LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

Shelf . rt 4 3 

UNITED STATI;-. OF AMERICA. 



ONV^ARD: 



A HUMBLE ATTEMPT TO AID 
THE BELIEVER 



IN 



HIS HEAVENWARD PROGRESS. 



JACOB HELFFENSTEIN, D. D. 



Your life is hid with Christ in God. Col. 8:8. 

AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 

150 NASSAU STREET, NEW VORIC. 

r 






There appear to have recently been awa- 
kened in many minds aspirations after higher 
attainments in the divine hfe. These aspira- 
tions should by no means be discouraged, but 
they require to be rightly directed; otherwise, 
instead of promoting the desired object, they 
may seriously mar the Christian character, and 
result in error and delusion. It is with a view 
to aid those who are longing for a closer ^Tvalk 
^?vith God, that the following pages have been 
written, with the earnest prayer that the bless- 
ing of God may accompany them. 



COPYRIGHT, 1880, 
BY AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY. 






CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 
Christian Piety a New and Divine Life page 5 

CHAPTEPv 11. 
A more elevated Piety needed - 12 

CHAPTER ni. 
Is it Attainable ? 16 

CHAPTER IV. 
A Fixed Purpose — Pressing toward the Mark 27 

CHAPTER V. 
Looking unto Jesus - - - 37 

CHAPTER VI. 

Morning Devotion — Beginning tlie Day witli God — 43 

CHAPTER Vn. 
Continual Prayer — 49 

CHAPTER VIH. 
Watclif Illness 56 



4 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IX. 

Spiritual Food - - - - 63 

CHAPTER X. 
Realizing the Presence of God - 69 

CHAPTER XL 
Trials Sanctified - - - ^2) 

CHAPTER XII. 
Living to the Lord ---- - 81 

CHAPTER XIII. 
The Daily Walk ■ 90 

CHAPTER XIV. 
Self-communion - - 97 

CHAPTER XV. 
Conclusion 103 



ONWARD. 



CHAPTER I. 

CHRISTIAN PIETY A NEW AND DIVINE LIFE. 

It is not a mere assent to a creed, nor a routine 
of external observances, nor an excitement of the 
emotions, but truly and properly a life, *' To be 
spiritually-minded is life.'' " I am crucified with 
Christ, nevertheless I live." *' Your life is hid 
with Christ in God." 

The universe abounds with various forms and 
manifestations of life. Thus we speak of vegetable 
life. This has its peculiar laws of production and 
development, of decay and dissolution. Then we 
speak of animal life. This rises a grade higher. 
As the life of a tree is superior to the existence of 
a stone, so is the life of an animal superior to that 
of a tree. Then there is what may be denominated 
intellecUml life, the life of a rational being, the ex- 
istence and operation of mind more elevated than 



6 ONWARD, 

either vegetable or animal life. But far above all 
is spi7'itual\\i^ — a life of godliness, the union of the 
soul with God, the great Source of all life. 

This life, in fallen man, is not the product of 
nature, but of grace ; not the result of our first 
birth, but of a second birth, by the agency of the 
Holy Spirit. In his unredeemed state man is 
spiritually dead-— '^ dead in trespasses and sins." 
However noble may be the natural powers with 
which he is endowed, he is morally dead, alien- 
ated from God and the life that is of God. The 
unregenerate man is as insensible to spiritual 
things as a corpse is to natural things. A dead 
man is wholly unconscious of everything around 
him. To him the landscape has no beauty, the 
rose no fragrance, the sun no splendor, the sweet- 
est melodies no charm. 

Such is the state of fallen man spiritually. He 
has eyes, but he sees not ; ears, but he hears not ; 
a heart, but he feels not. He has no spiritual per- 
ception, no spiritual sympathies, no spiritual aspi- 
rations, no spiritual activity. He hears not the 
voice of God as it speaks to him from the Sacred 
Word, from the volume of creation, or the dispen- 
sations of providence ; he discerns not the glory of 
God as it shines in the face of Jesus ; his heart 



CHRISTIAN PIETY A DIVINE LIFE, 7 

beats with no pulsations of holy love ; his lips give 
no utterance to prayer or praise. Man is not sim- 
ply in a dying condition, but dead, dead. The lan- 
guage of inspiration could not more strikingly 
express his entire estrangement from God and 
holiness. No matter what may be his mental pow- 
ers ; no matter how much he may be distinguished 
for his integrity, kindness, and generosity, he is as 
utterly destitute of spiritual life as a dead man is of 
natural life. There are some who are lovely even 
in death. The cold and pallid countenance still 
retains its attractions, and it seems as if we must 
hear from the closed lips their accustomed accents; 
but the fluttering heart has ceased to beat, and the 
inanimate form is committed to the dust as its 
proper abode. So is it often with man in his spir- 
itual death. Dead as he is to all holy impulses and 
to all holy enjoyment, we may still discover in him 
much that is naturally good, upon which we cannot 
but look with admiration and delight. 

The regenerated man enters upon a new world. 
He begins to have new views, new desires, new 
affections, new tastes. New objects meet his vis- 
ion, new sounds strike his ear, new sensations thrill 
his bosom. The conscience is quickened, the un- 
derstanding enlightened, the character of God ap- 



8 ONWARD. 

pears in a new aspect, the plan of redemption is 
replete with wonders, the affections rise to things 
above, prayer becomes a delight, the burden of 
guilt is removed, the cloud of wrath is dispelled, 
and the future is irradiated with light and hope. 

" Our quickerxcd souls awake, and rise 
From the long sleep of death ; 
On heavenly things we fix our eyes, 
And praise employs our breath." 

The feelings of all new-born souls are not in all 
respects alike, though the change in all is substan- 
tially the same. Religious experience is greatly 
modified by a man's natural temperament and his 
apprehensions of divine truth. We need not won- 
der, where there is a sudden transition from pun- 
gent conviction to the assurance of pardoning mer- 
cy, that the joy of the convert should rise even to 
transport. Born to a new life, everything appears 
to him new. He has a new God and Saviour, new 
hopes and enjoyments. Even the face of nature 
appears new. The sun shines with unusual brill- 
iancy, the fields are clothed with fresh verdure, the 
flowers have a sweeter perfume, the birds warble 
more charming melodies. All creation seems full 
of God, declaring his glory, and showing forth his 
handiwork. ** Ye shall go out with joy, and be led 



CHRISTIAN PIETY A DIVINE LIFE. g 

forth with peace : the mountains and the hills shLiil 
break forth before you into singing, and all the 
trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead 
of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead 
of the brier shall come up the myrtle-tree, and it 
shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting 
sign, that shall not be cut off." 

The grand principle of this new life is faith. 
" The life that I now live in the flesh, I live by the 
faith of the Son of God." The natural man is con- 
trolled by natural objects ; the spiritual man by 
spiritual objects. The one is supremely influenced 
by things seen and temporal ; the other by things 
unseen and eternal. 

Where there is life we look for motion. Spirit- 
ual life is operative, as well as spontaneous and 
free. So far from paralyzing the mind, it excites it 
to vigorous and healthy activity. If the Christian 
is '* dead to sin," he is " alive to God." He serves 
God, not from compulsion, but from choice. His 
faith is a working faith ; his hope a " lively hope ;" 
his love a constraining love. 

This may be truly designated as a divine life. 
It comes from God and it leads to God. Feeble as 
it may be in its commencement, it is ever acquiring 
increased vigor, and advancing to its ultimate ma- 



lo ONV/ARD. 

turity. Natural life may become extinct, but spir- 
itual life will be perpetuated in endless and pro- 
gressive activity. 

What a different thing is religion from what 
many suppose it to be. How many mistake the 
mere shadow for the substance, the form for the 
power of godliness. How many, who even have *^a 
name to live/' are still dead in sin. No external 
reformation, no pangs of conviction, no flashes of 
joy, no forms of devotion, can afford a substitute 
for this interior, spiritual life. Not until we are 
created anew in Christ Jesus do we perform any 
works m^orally good and acceptable to God. All 
our previous works are but " dead works," being 
destitute of all vitality. Religion does not consist 
in the cultivation of a principle of moral goodness 
already existing, but in the implantation of a new 
principle — the exercise of affections entirely new — 
a change deep and radical. '' Old things are passed 
away ; behold, all things are become new." 

Correctly as this new and divine life may be 
described by the pen or the lip, it can be fully 
known by those only who are its happy subjects. 
It is not a mere matter of theory or speculation, 
but of heartfelt experience. *' We have received 
the Spirit which is of God, that Vv^e might know the 



CHRISTIAN FIETY A DIVINE LIFE, i e 

things that are freely given to us of God." It is 
truly designated as a hidden life, hidden not merely 
from the world, but to a great extent even from the 
believer. We may discover its external manifesta- 
tions, and feel its sacred influence, but the secret 
operations of the Holy Spirit, in its production, its 
perpetuation, and its consummation, are beyond the 
comprehension of the human mind. 



12 ONWARD. 

CHAPTER II. 
A MORE RLE I A TED PIETY XEEDED, 

A Di5Ti.\x-ui5HED writer has remarked, '' The 
external prosperity of the church was never greater 
nor the spiritual power less than at this very day." 

Though we may not indorse this sentiment, is 
it not obvious that the tone of piety in the church 
is very far from what it ought to be and what it 
will be } Never, perhaps, has there been a period 
W'hen there has been a wider extension of true piety 
than at the present day ; and yet while Zion's cords 
are lengthened, is it not questionable whether her 
stakes are proportionally strengthened ? While 
we have gained in quantity, may we not have lost 
in quality 'i With all the activity and enterprise 
that distinguish the church of our age, is there not 
still a lamentable w^ant of that spirituality and 
purity which should characterize the followers of 
the immaculate Redeemer .^ 

The Rev. John Angell James has forcibly re- 
marked, ''Amid much that is cheering, there is, on 
the other hand, much that is discouraging and dis- 
tressing to the more pious observer. We behold a 



I 



MORE ELE VA TED FIE 2 'V NEEDED, 1 3 

strange combination of zeal and worldly-minded- 
ness ; great activity for the extension of religion in 
the earth, united with lamentable indifference to 
the state of religion in the soul ; in short, apparent 
vigor in the extremities, with a growing torpor at 
the heart. Multitudes are substituting zeal for 
piety, liberality for mortification, and a social for a 
personal religion. No careful reader of the New 
Testament, and observer of the present state of the 
church, can fail to be convinced, one should think, 
that what is now wanting is a high spirituality." 

In comparing the piety of the present with the 
past, we are very liable to form an erroneous judg- 
ment. Each age has its characteristics, its peculiar 
excellences, and its defects ; and while we repudi- 
ate the latter, we may unduly magnify the former. 
Christianity is essentially the same at all times, but 
it may vary in its manifestations. Certain Chris- 
tian graces may be more fully developed at one 
period than at another, just as certain doctrinal 
truths may be presented with more or less promi- 
nence. Looking at the matter impartially, we are 
inclined to think that while the church of the pres- 
ent is making rapid progress, it may not always be 
in the right direction, or by the most unexception- 
able means. 



14 ONWARD. 

There are two grand defects in the piety of 
many professed Christians — the want of depth and 
of stability — the latter the natural result of the for- 
mer. Their feelings and conduct are subject to 
continual variations. Their course resembles far 
more the blazing meteor whose brilliancy aston- 
ishes us for a moment, than '^ the shining light that 
shineth more and more unto the perfect day." If 
they are Christians at all, they are certainly very 
unstable ones. If their religious life commenced 
with becoming fervor, how quickly was this fol- 
lowed by a marked declension. The religion of 
vast numbers who bear the Christian name seems 
to form its character entirely by times, places, and 
circumstances. There is a constant tendency in 
the human heart to wander from God and duty. 
Even the most advanced Christian cannot but feel 
and deplore this tendency. Who has not had occa- 
sion to utter the complaint, 

" Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. 
Prone to leave the God I love." 

Alas for our leanness, our leanness ! How fee- 
ble our spiritual pulse, how languid our affections, 
how weak our faith, how lifeless our prayers, how 
inefficient our efforts, how earthly our attachments, 
how wavering our steps, how dim our prospects for 



MORE ELE VA TED PIETY NEEDED, 1 5 

the future. Where are the professed Christians 
who are "following hard after God," panting for 
communion with him " as the hart panteth after the 
water-brooks/' "crucified to the world and the world 
to them," professing the abiding witness of the 
Spirit and rejoicing in hope of future glory, daily- 
denying themselves, taking up the cross and fol- 
lowing their divine Exemplar and Redeemer ? 
Such Christians, thank God, there are, but how 
comparatively small the number. How doubtful 
the piety of many both to themselves and to the 
world. At what a "poor, dying rate" are multi- 
tudes living who profess to have entered upon the 
new life and to have been made heirs of an eternal 
inheritance. 

It becomes then a most serious question. How 
shall a more elevated and consistent piety be at- 
tained } In other words, how shall we live in con- 
stant communion with God, and enjoy an uninter- 
rupted sense of his favor ? This question the writer 
proposes in this volume to answer, trusting that 
with the Divine blessing it may be the means of 
establishing the wavering, and exciting in the faith- 
ful believer aspirations after still higher attain- 
ments in personal holiness, increased health and 
vigor in the Christian life. 



1 6 ONWAJ^n. 

CHAPTER III. 

IS IT A TTAINABLE f 

In the first place, there must be a full persua- 
sion that a higher standard of piety is attainable. 
Without this persuasion there can be no motive to 
seek it. Hope is the mainspring of action. In all 
the pursuits of life it is the expectation of ultimate 
success that nerves the mind with energy and in- 
cites to perseverance. The sentiment so prevalent, 
that while we are encumbered with flesh and blood, 
and surrounded with so many unfavorable influ- 
ences, a high degree of spirituality is unattainable, 
has had a most paralyzing influence. Thousands 
have thus been led to be too well contented with 
their low attainments, and even to justify them by 
the plea of necessity. 

But must we ever live at this distance from 
God } Is there no higher, holier, happier state at- 
tainable on earth than that which is commonly 
reached by the disciples of Jesus .^ Is it necessary 
that their piety should be so superficial, above all 
that it should be subject to such continual fluctua- 
tion } Is it necessary that they should one day be 



IS IT A TTAINABLE ? 1 7 

hoping, the next desponding ; one day aspiring 
after heaven, the next cleaving to the earth ; one 
day walking in the light of God's countenance, the 
next walking in darkness; one day singing the 
Lord's song in the house of their pilgrimage, the 
next suspending their harps on the willows in mel- 
ancholy silence ; one day all aglow with zeal in the 
cause of Christ, the next betraying the most crimi- 
nal indifference ? Admitting that earth is not 
heaven, is there not something here akin to it, 
something that approximates towards it ? *' Sup- 
pose the absolute, sinless rest of the blessed is not 
to be attained here, does it follow that there is noth- 
ing that is ? Though heaven itself does not lie on 
this side of the river of death, is there not a land of 
Beulah that does ? and have not multitudes, who 
once were scarce able to keep awake on the en- 
chanted ground, found themselves renewed as with 
youthful vigor when they entered this balmy re- 
gion ?" 

" Now," says Bunyan, *' I saw in my dream that 
by this time the Pilgrims were got over the En- 
chanted Ground, and entering into the country of 
Beulah, whose air was very sweet and pleasant, the 
way lying directly through it, they solaced them- 
selves there for a season. Yea, here they heard 



1 3 GNIVARD. 

continually the singing of birds, and saw every day 
the flowers appear in the earth, and heard the voice 
of the turtle in the land. In this country the sun 
shineth night and day. Here they were within 
sight of the city they were going to ; also here met 
them some of the inhabitants thereof ; for in this 
land the Shining Ones commonly walked, because 
it was on the borders of heaven. In this land also 
the contract between the Bride and the Bridegroom 
was renewed; yea, here, 'as the Bridegroom re- 
joiceth over the Bride, so did their God rejoice over 
them.' " J 

Bunyan ascribes this happy state to his pilgrims 
as they drew near the celestial city. It is not un- 
common for the aged Christian w4io has faithfully 
served God and his generation, especially for the 
dying Christian, to be favored with such visions of 
future glory, and such manifestations of divine love 
that heaven seems to have been begun on earth. 
But why should we limit this blessedness to the 
close of life ? Why may there not be at an earlier 
period a similar experience, an experience free from 
all painful doubts and fears, and the enjoym.ent of 
the full assurance of final salvation, a '* peace that 
flows like a river," a ''joy unspeakable and full of 
glory" ? 



IS IT A TT A IN ABLE ? 19 

"The hill of Zion yields 

A thousand sacred sweets, 
Before we reach the heavenly fields, 
Or walk the golden streets." 

The ecstatic feelings experienced by the believer 
from the clear apprehension and assurance of future 
' felicity may not be a permanent, but only a tran- 
sient experience, as was the case with the pilgrims, 
for it is said that in the country of Beulah " they 
solaced themselves for a season," having not yet 
reached their home, nor passed through all their 
trials. But if such ravishing visions of the glory 
of heaven may not be permanent, they may be fol- 
lowed by what may be of still higher value — more 
entire submission to the Divine will, more abstrac- 
tion from the world, more unreserved consecration, 
and more patient Vv^aiting for the Master's sum- 
mons. 

There was a time in the religious life of Mrs. 
Edwards, the wife of President Edwards, when, 
deeply humbled on account of her shortcomings, 
she gave herself to Christ with renewed consecra- 
tion ; and from that period, it is said, she enjoyed 
a sweet peace and serenity of soul, without a cloud 
to interrupt it, a constant rejoicing in God and as- 
surance of his favor, entire resignation to his will 



2 ONWARD. 

with respect to health or sickness, ease or pain, life 
or death ; sensible and immediate answers to pray- 
er ; realizing constantly the presence of God with 
her, and doing everything to his honor and glory. 

Dr. Payson, after passing through some severe 
mental conflicts, was favored with such gracious 
manifestations as he had never before enjoyed. 
'' Oh, what a Master," says he, ^'do I serve. I have 
known nothing, felt nothing all my days, even in 
comparison with what I now see in him. Never 
was preaching such sweet work as it is now. Never 
did the world seem such a nothing ; never did 
heaven appear so near, so sweet, and so overwhelm- 
ingly glorious ! God's promises appear so strong, 
so solid, so real, so substantial, more so than the 
rocks and everlasting hills. And his perfections — 
what shall I say of them ? When I think of one, I 
wish to dwell upon it for ever. But another, and 
another, equally glorious, claim a share of admira- 
tion ; and when I begin to praise, I wish never to 
cease, but have it the commencement of that song 
which shall never end." 

The Rev. John Flavel, an eminent Puritan wri- 
ter, while on a journey to preach in a certain place, 
had such views of the divine glory and of heaven 
that he became entirely oblivious to surrounding 



/S IT A TTAINABLE I 2 1 

objects. In this ecstatic state of mind he contin- 
ued during the whole night. Sleep forsook him, but 
he said it was one of the most refreshing nights he 
ever spent. This he afterwards used to call "one of 
the days of heaven." 

" I look for no heaven/' said the seraphic Bax- 
ter, "but the perfection of divine life, light, and 
love, in endless glory with Christ and his saints ; 
and this he has already begun in me!^ 

And v^^hat saith the apostle? "Now he that 
hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, 
who also hath given unto us the earnest of the 
Spirit" — the sure pledge and foretaste of the glory 
yet to be revealed. 

It may be urged that these are individual and 
extraordinary cases ; but why should not such con- 
secration to God and such communion with him 
be the common attainment of Christians .^ What 
others have attained we may also attain, and when 
the church arrives at her millennial glory, v/e are 
told that "he that is feeble shall be as David, and 
the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of 
the Lord before him." 

Is there not "the full corn in the ear" as well 
as "the blade".? "the perfect day" as well as the 
first dawn } Are there not fathers and mothers in 



2 2 ONWARD, 

Christ as well as babes ? Are we not required to 
be '' in the fear of the Lord all the day long/' to be 
*' always abounding in the work of the Lord," to be 
*' always zealously affected with a good thing," to 
''rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, and in 
everything give thanks" ? Did not the apostle pray 
that his Eohesian brethren mi2:ht be *' filled with 
all the fulness of God," and assure them that God 
was able to do for them, exceeding abundantly above 
all they could ask or think ? 

We engage here in no discussion respecting 
what is termed '' Christian perfection," '' entire 
sanctification," or *' the higher Christian life." It 
is enough for us to knov/ that there are heights and 
depths, lengths and breadths in the redeeming love 
of Christ, which none of us have yet reached, but 
which may yet be realized in our happy experience. 
Why should we ever remain in the vestibule of 
Christianity, while within the sacred temple are 
such wonders yet to be disclosed } Why this un- 
steady walk, this continual variation in our religious 
affections } Surely there is enough in the great 
truths of the gospel to awaken within us the deepest 
interest, and prompt to the most unwavering fidel- 
ity. V/hat mighty motives are continually pressing 
upon us to persevering diligence — the glory of the 



IS IT A TTAINABLE 1 23 

infinite God, the dying love of the Saviour, the 
sacrifice of the cross, the value and destiny of the 
soul, a world in sin and death, the judgment of the 
great day, the transcendent bliss of heaven, the 
unutterable woes of perdition. It seems scarcely 
possible that any one who seriously admits these 
momentous truths can decline in his religious fervor 
a single moment. Dwelling as we do in tabernacles 
of clay, and subject as we are to bodily infirmities 
that often restrain the free exercise of the mind, 
the spirit may be v/illing while the flesh is weak. 
But while our feelings may change every hour of 
the day, our purpose to serve and glorify God may 
be continually acquiring increased vigor. 

There can be no question that the piety of 
Christians may become not only more profound and 
ardent, but also more uniform and stable, a piety 
whose influence will be felt in every period of life, 
and will be carried through every hour and moment 
of the day. Such piety can be found only in con- 
nection with inward purity. Action must be the 
result of principle. It is in vain to prescribe rules 
for a holy life, unless there exists a holy heart. 
Religion, to send forth its fertilizing and refreshing 
streams over our every-day life, must have its source 
in a full and overflowing fountain. 



2 4 ONWARD. 

It may be important here to remark : there is a 
tendency in some minds to connect with the pro- 
fession of eminent piety, special divine manifesta- 
tions as an inseparable accompaniment. With such 
manifestations we know that God has occasionally 
favored his people, imparting to them clearer dis- 
coveries of divine truth, filling their hearts with 
transporting joy, and affording them in a high 
degree the foretaste of celestial bliss. Many Chris- 
tians, however, who have made great spiritual prog- 
ress, know nothing of such remarkable experience, 
and yet live in daily communion with God, and the 
Spirit's witness to their adoption. Indeed it would 
scarcely be possible in our present imperfect state 
of existence, to endure those manifestations of the 
divine presence and glory which some distinguished 
saints have enjoyed. Our physical nature would be 
overpowered, were they often repeated, or were they 
continued any length of time, as may be clearly 
seen in the case of the Rev. John Flavel, already 
referred to. 

The Rev. Wm. Tennent, w^iile pastor of the 
Presbyterian church near Freehold, New Jersey, 
was accustomed during the interval between the 
two services on the Sabbath, to retire to a grove for 
meditation and prayer. On one of these occasions 



IS IT A TTAINABLE ? 2 5 

he had such views of God and heaven, that he vvas 
hardly able, from exhaustion, to reach the church, 
and when he entered he had to be assisted into the 
pulpit, preaching then with extraordinary power. 
Glorious as was this manifestation, had it been his 
every-day experience, life v/ould soon have become 
extinct, and his labors on earth have closed. Such 
manifestations are made only on special occasions 
and for special purposes. Our advancement in 
holiness, therefore, is not to be determined by them, 
and if withheld, and our emotions should not always 
be raised to the highest intensity, we may still live 
a life of faith and consecration to God, having con- 
tinually the testimony that we please him. Feeling 
in religion is not to be discarded, but a surer test 
of piety is faith — faith exercised even under physi- 
cal and mental depression. Nor should we meas- 
ure the degree of our piety by the degree of our 
assurance, but by daily walking humbly with God. 

There is another mistake which some Christians 
make, especially those of the mystic school. As 
religion consists in the harmony of man's will with 
the will of God, they sometimes speak as if their 
will were so absorbed in the divine will as to be 
entirely annihilated, having no choice betweea 
events prosperous or adverse, jo}'ous or sorrowful. 

Oinvara. A 



26 ONWARD, 

Such indifference seems hardly possible, being 
utterly inconsistent with the laws of the human 
mind, and is nowhere required as an evidence of 
true piety. Unquestionably there should in all 
cases be the most cordial acquiescence in the will 
of God, as revealed in his w^ord and indicated in 
his providence. This, however, is entirely consist- 
ent with the keenest sensibility to suffering, and 
with earnest prayer for its removal. The hiima^t 
naticre of Christ shrank from suffering, and he 
plead that the bitter cup might pass away from 
him, adding, however, with unqualified submission, 
*' nevertheless not my will, but thine be done.'* 

The truly pious, yet in some respects visionary 
lady, Madam Guyon, appears at times to have car- 
ried the idea of self-annihilation or passive suffer- 
ing, to an unscriptural extreme, assuming burdens 
which she could well have avoided, as a salutary 
discipline, and a means of spiritual advancement. 
When God in his providence lays upon us crosses, 
let us bear them with submission ; but we are 
hardly required to m.ake crosses for ourselves, and 
regard it as an evidence of extraordinary piety that 
we bear them so patiently. 



A FIXED PURPOSE, 27 



CHAPTER IV. 

A FIXED PURPOSE— PRESSING TOWARDS 
THE MARK. 

" O Gody my heart is fixed!' With the full 
persuasion that eminent and habitual piety is 
attainable, it must now be our firm resolve, in de- 
pendence upon divine grace, to possess it. Salva- 
tion in all its rich blessings is the gift of God, but 
it is bestowed only on those who earnestly seek it. 
The influence of the Holy Spirit, far from superse- 
ding our personal agency, is designed rather to call 
it into requisition. No sinner is saved unless he 
strives to enter into the strait gate, and no Chris- 
tian can advance in holiness without the fixed de- 
termination to do so. It will not do to sit down in 
a state of mere passivity, and wait for the blessing 
to come to us. With what insatiable longings did 
the psalmist pant after communion with God, 
"As the hart panteth after the water-brooks; so 
panteth my soul after thee, O God ; my soul thirst- 
eth for God, for the living God. O God, thou art 
my God, early will I seek thee ; my soul thirsteth 
for thee ; my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and 



28 ONWARD. 

thirsty land, where no water is — my soul followeth 
hard after thee/' 

"This one thing," said Paul, "I do: forgetting 
those things which are behind, and reaching forth 
unto those things which are before, I press toward 
the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in 
Christ Jesus." 

This was the all-absorbing desire and aim of the 
great apostle — full salvation in Christ. Nothing 
short of this could satisfy his regenerated nature. 
Forgetting the past, neither dispirited by its fail- 
ures, nor unduly elated by its success, his constant 
aspiration, his most strenuous effort was to attain 
to the highest standard of piety on earth, and to the 
unsullied bliss of heaven. From the pursuit of this 
object nothing could divert him, no persecutions, no 
trials, no sense of his own weakness and unworthi- 
ness. Like the Grecian racer, he strained every 
nerve, exerted every power to reach the goal, to 
obtain complete redemption. When he uttered 
these words he had been a Christian and a minister 
about thirty years. He had made great advance- 
ment in the divine life, and had been signally 
blessed in his labors, but the past was, as it were, 
forgotten in the bright prospects of the future. 
His soul was fired with holy ambition to possess 



A FIXED PURPOSE. 29 

the perfect image of God and the unfading crown 
of righteousness. It was not wealth, not fame, not 
anything that this fleeting world can afford, on 
which his heart was set, but the marky the prize of 
his high calling in Christ Jesus. 

If we consult the memoirs of eminently pious 
persons, we shall find that their attainments were 
reached b}^ the same fixed and unalterable purpose. 
That devout lady Mrs. Elizabeth Rowe, author of 
"Devout Exercises" (a work we could wish were 
more generally read), in speaking of her intense 
longings after holiness, says, '' If God should bid 
me form a wish and take whatever in heaven or 
earth I had to ask, it should not be the wealth of 
the world, nor the crowns of princes, no, nor yet 
the wreaths of martyrs, nor thrones of archangels ; 
my first request is to be made holy : this is my 
highest concern." 

*'To be an eminent Christian," says James 
Brainerd Taylor, ''will cost much." He truly found 
it to be so in his own experience. After receiving 
a new baptism of the Spirit, constituting a new era 
in his religious life, he writes, " I had an increasing 
desire that the Lord would visit me, and fill my 
soul with the Holy -Ghost. My cry to him was, 
' Seal me for ever thine.* My earnest desire then 



30 ^ QNWAR'B. 

was, as it had been ever since I professed religion 
six years before, that all love of the world might 
be destroyed, all selfishness extirpated, pride ban- 
ished, unbelief removed, all idols dethroned, every- 
thing hostile to holiness and opposed to the divine 
will crucified ; that holiness to the Lord might be 
engraven on my heart, and evermore characterize 
my conversation. At this very juncture I was 
delightfully conscious of giving up all to God. I 
was enabled in my heart to say, ' Here, Lord, take me, 
take my whole soul, and seal me thine, thine now, 
and thine for ever !' Then there ensued such emo- 
tions as I never before experienced. All was calm, 
tranquil, silent, solemn, and a heaven of love per- 
vaded my whole soul. I had a witness of God's love 
to me, and of mine to him. I was dissolved in tears 
of love and gratitude to our blessed Lord. He 
came as king, and took full possession of my heart. 
Since that blessed season I have enjoyed times of 
refreshment in which I have obtained nearer access 
to God. Oh the peace which I have had, and joy 
in the Holy Ghost! It has flowed as a river, I 
have been happy in my Lord ; I have exulted in 
the God of my salvation." 

Why should not the whole church be in posses- 
sion of such piety } What the grace of God has 



A FIXED PURPOSE. 31 

done for some, it can do for all. We are not 
straitened in him, only in ourselves. 

It may be that the reader has often repeated 
the lines, 

" Could I but climb where Moses stood, 
And view the landscape o'er !" 

Be not satisfied with the mere wish. Rise 
and ascend, and stop not until you reach the sum- 
mit, and behold the goodly land spread before you, 
" dressed in living green." *' Be not faithless but 
believing." Do obstacles obstruct your progress } 
faith can overcome them all. Granting that we 
live in an age of worldliness, " this is the victory 
that overcometh the world, even our faith." Grant- 
ing that the tone of piety in the church is low ; 
must it always remain so t Granting that absO' 
lute sinless perfection is not attained on earth ; 
is there no approach towards it } 

The question may here be asked : Is the pos- 
session of eminent piety a sudden or a gradual 
attainment.'* It may be either. There are un- 
doubtedly instances, as in the experience of Mrs. 
Edwards, J. B. Taylor, and others already referred 
to, in which believers, after deep humiliation, and 
renewed consecration to God, have at once reached 



32 OA'IVARD, 

a standard of piety unknown to them before ; still, 
however, following on to know the Lord more fully, 
daily confessing their short-comings and imploring 
forgiveness through the blood of atonement. It is 
thus possible for a Christian, by a more entire sur- 
render of himself to God and a more vigorous ex- 
ercise of faith, to reach a point in a day which he 
had in vain sought to reach for years. 

The work of holiness, however, is represented 
in the Scriptures as a gradual process, *' The path 
of the just is as the shining light that shineth more 
and more unto the perfect day." "Grow in grace, 
and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus 
Christ." "Giving, all diligence add to your faith 
virtue, and to virtue knowledge," etc. Regeneration 
is an instantaneous change ; justification an instan- 
taneous act ; sanctification a gradual work. This 
is well expressed in the " Shorter Catechism of the 
Presbyterian Church :" " Sanctification is the work 
of God's free grace, whereby we are renewed in the 
whole man after the image of God, and are enabled 
more and more to die unto sin and live unto right- 
eousness." 

If the spiritual progress of the believer may at 
times be slow, it is sure; if attended with painful 
conflicts, it is followed by glorious triumphs. We 



A FIXED PURPOSE, 2>Z 

certainly ought to expect an immediate answer to 
our prayers for increased sanctification ; but if the 
blessing does not come at once, let it call forth 
only greater importunity. The insatiable desires of 
the Christian after holiness will be satisfied. God 
who has created them will not deny them. '' Blessed 
are they which do hunger and thirst after righteous- 
ness, for they shall be filled." 

It may be important here to remark, that what- 
ever progress may be made in the divine life in 
every stage of that life, its essential elements are 
the same, the same in the babe as in the father in 
Christ, the difference being only one of degree. In 
its incipiency, as well as in its more advanced state, 
this life has its appropriate laws, its peculiar char- 
acteristics, by which it is clearly distinguished from 
the life of nature. Like all life it is progressive. 
If its development is not in all cases equally rapid, 
still there is growth, '' Ye shall go forth and grow 
up as calves of the stall." Mai. 4:2.- 

All the Christian graces are capable of increase. 
While this increase may in some instances be slow, 
and hardly perceptible, in others there may speedi- 
ly be acquired a spiritual vigor that may seem like 
a second conversion, or an entirely new life, while 
in its nature or principles it is the same life previ- 



34 ONWARD, 

ously existing, only carried forward to a higher de- 
gree of maturity. 

Have not the terms frequently employed in 
reference to this subject tended to produce misap- 
prehension and confusion ? such, for example, as 
the phrase *^ The higher life." If by this is simply 
meant higher attainments in holiness, it expresses 
only what all Christians admit to be attainable ; 
but the language seems rather to convey the idea 
of a new life, a life entirely distinct from the life 
essential to all true piety. So too the term sancti- 
fication. This is often spoken of as a new experi- 
ence, or as having no immediate and necessary 
connection with justification or regeneration ; where- 
as in all cases sanctification is inseparable both from 
regeneration and justification. The feeblest Chris- 
tian, while he is fully justified, is also in a measure 
sanctified. *' Sanctified in Christ Jesus,'' is charac- 
teristic of all the people of God. "But ye are 
washed, but ye are sanctified., but ye are justified, 
in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of 
our God." 

''Entire sanctification'' and *' perfection'' are 
Hable to the same misconstruction; for however 
elevated may be our piety, the process of sanctifi- 
cation is still going forward, and will be completed 



A FIXED PURPOSE. 35 

only when the church is presented before the 
throne " not having spot or wrinkle, or any such 
thing." 

One of the most distinguished advocates of 
*' Entire sanctification/' who himself professes to 
have reached that state, remarks : '' Since then I 
have passed through many fiery trials and sore 
temptations, have frequently been unfaithful, and 
through want of watchfulness have been necessita- 
ted to come again and again to the cleansing 
blood ; yet I have never had any reason to doubt 
that when the Holy Ghost came to my heart as a 
witnessing Spirit he came as a purifying Spirit 
also." This surely is not entire sanctification. Is 
not unfaithfulness sin ? 

The Rev. John Wesley, of whose piety and 
apostolic spirit we can hardly speak in too exalted 
terms, defines Christian perfection to be *' the loving 
God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. 
This implies that no wrong temper, none contrary 
to love remains in the soul ; and that all the 
thoughts, words and actions are governed by pure 
love." And yet while he claims that the attain- 
ment of such perfection is the present privilege of 
all believers, he admits : 

'^ I. Every one may mistake as long as he lives. 



36 ONWARD, 

''2. A mistake in opinion may occasion a mis- 
take in practice. 

" 3. Every such mistake is a transgression of 
the perfect law. Therefore, 

'' 4. Every such mistake, were it not for the blood 
of atonement would expose to eternal damnation. 

*' 5. It follows that the most perfect have contin- 
ual need of the merits of Christ, even for their 
actual transgressions, and may say for themselves, 
as well as for their brethren, * Forgive us our tres- 
passes.' " 

This perfection has been denominated evan- 
gelical in distinction from legal perfection. But 
is not the lav/ of God the eternal standard of 
right, and can there be perfect holiness short of 
perfect conformity to that law } Has not much of 
the perplexity in which this subject has been in- 
volved resulted from the want of definiteness, and 
from the different meanings attached to words ? 
In passing judgment on the sentiments and piety 
of our Christian brethren, it should ever be in the 
spirit of charity and kindness. There is often an 
apparent difference of sentiment where there is 
none in reality. 



LOOKING UNTO JESUS. 37 

CHAPTER V. 

LOOKING UNTO JESUS. 

I 

In this brief and comprehensive sentence is un- 
folded the whole mystery of sanctification. ''Look- 
ing unto yesus'' constitutes the Christian's daily 
exercise and his daily strength. As religion begins, 
so it is carried forward in its progressive stages, 
until it terminates in celestial glory. No sooner is 
the eye of faith directed to a crucified Redeemer 
than the sinner receives a free, full, and eternal par- 
don ; and as it is by faith in Christ he is justified, 
so it is by faith he is sanctified. The just are said 
to live by faith, to stand by faith, to walk by faith. 
The heart is purified by faith, the world is overcome 
by faith, the fiery darts of the wicked are quenched 
by faith. It is a serious mistake to suppose that, 
while we are justified by faith, we are sanctified by 
works. It is this legal spirit, this dependence upon 
our own doings, that prevents many an anxious 
inquirer from obtaining solid peace, and that also 
hinders many a Christian from enjoying fully the 
freedom wherewith Christ makes his people free. 
Rom. 9:31, 32. In the religion of the gospel, Christ 



38 ONWARD, 

is all in all — " our wisdom and righteousness and 
sanctification and redemption." ^' My beginningy 
progress y and ending'' says Professor Francke of 
Germany, " is by faith in Jesus Christ. When I feel 
my utter inability, and acknowledge that I can do 
nothing of myself, and cast myself upon his mercy 
alone, I feel a new power of communication to my 
soul. I do not seek to be justified in one way and 
sanctified in another." 

In vain are all our efforts to get rid of sin, and 
bring forth the fruits of righteousness, until deeply 
conscious of our own weakness, and renouncing all 
self-dependence, we look to Jesus as the source of 
all spiritual life and strength. ^* Abide in me, and 
I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, 
except it abide in the vine ; no more can ye, except 
ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches. 
He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same 
bringeth forth much fruit ; for without me ye can 
do nothing." 

The eminent piety of the apostle Paul was the 
result of his abiding union to Christ — " Christ in 
him the hope of glory." **I am crucified with 
Christ : nevertheless I live ; yet not I, but Christ 
liveth in me ; and the life which I now live in the 
flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who 



I 



LOOKING UNTO JESUS, 39 

loved me, and gave himself for me.'* '* True holi- 
ness flourishes only in the soil enriched by the 
blood of Christ." It is to the cross we are indebt- 
ed for our deliverance, not only from the penalty of 
sin, but also from its power and dominion. It is to 
the cross we are indebted for the gift of the Holy 
Spirit, whose office it is to renew the heart, and 
conform it to the image of God. It is to the cross 
we are indebted for the only effectual motives to ho- 
liness and devotion to the service of God. '' Ye are 
bought with a price ; therefore glorify God in your 
body and in your spirit, which are God's." Chris- 
tian love, fortitude, patience, and self-denial can be 
learned only in view of a Saviour's life and death. 
'^ Where does penitence weep, but at the cross } 
Where is the flesh humbled, and pride debased, but 
at the cross } Where, if not at the cross, does un- 
wearied diligence in well-doing find its impulse and 
encouragement } Where else does the sinner hold 
intercourse with God 1 Where is Christian vigi- 
lance unsleeping, if not at the cross } Where does 
faith work by love, or hope purify, or holy fear 
alarm, or holy promise comfort, or the meekness of 
wisdom rectify the inequalities of the natural tem- 
perament, but at the cross V 

Five persons once engaged in conversation as 



40 ONWARD. 

to the most effectual means to mortify sin. One 
suggested meditation on death ; the second, on the 
judgment; the third, on \h^ joys of heaven; the 
fourth, on the torments of hell ; the fifth, on the 
sufferings of Christ. But without the influence 
derived from the last, the other motives, however 
impressive, would prove utterly powerless. '' God 
forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified 
unto me, and I unto the world." 

Every motive to holiness centres in the cross, 
and derives from it its highest force. Nowhere 
else have we such an exhibition of the righteousness 
of the divine law, the holiness of the divine charac- 
ter, the evil nature of sin, the fearful doom of the 
sinner, and the boundless love of God ; and no- 
where, consequently, such powerful persuasives to 
obedience. It is only by •'* the truth as it is in Je- 
sus,'* received by faith, and applied by the Holy 
Spirit, that sin is dethroned, and the heart cleansed 
from its defilement. 

The gospel provides the only remedy for sin, for 
deliverance both from its penalty and its power. 
The law may convict, but it cannot convert ; it may 
condemn, but it cannot pardon ; it may stir up the 
corruption of the human heart, but it cannot sub- 



LOOKING UNTO JESUS. ^x 

due it. "But — what the law could not do, in that it 
was weak through the flesh— God, sending his own 
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, con- 
demned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of 
the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after 
the flesh, but after the spirit." Rom. 8 : 3, 4. 

Spiritual life can be sustained only by daily 
^'looking itnto yesiisT The tragic scene of the 
Saviour's death, as well as his immaculate life, must 
be kept in constant remembrance. Our meditations 
on this subject must not be confined to the Sab- 
bath or to communion occasions, but must become 
an habitual exercise, by our '^ always bearing about 
in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus." Every 
m6ment we need the merit of his blood, and every' 
moment should we look to him for fresh supplies 
of grace. 

" My dying Saviour and my God, 
Fountain for guilt and sin, 
Sprinkle me ever with thy bjood, 
And wash, and keep me clean.'' 

It may be that the reader has struggled hard 
and long to obtain the mastery over some easily- 
besetting sin. All your efforts have hitherto proved 
unavailing. The more you strive against it, the 
more you feel its power. You are discouraged, 



42 ONWARD, 

and ready to conclude that what you are now you 
will remain — that all your days you will drag heav- 
ily along in your pilgrimage to the "better coun- 
try." But may you not have misapprehended the 
way in which the conquest is to be achieved ? Are 
you not trusting in yourself instead of trusting 
in Christ — striving to overcome sin in your own 
strength instead of in his ? Let the eye of your 
faith now be steadfastly fixed on him, and plead 
with him to do for you what in vain you have tried 
to do for yourself. Look to him as you did when 
you first felt the burden of sin, and found in him a 
free justification ; look to him for light, strength, 
purity, comfort — for all. In him dwelleth all ful- 
ness. ''Ye are complete in him." ''I find," says 
a pious lady of Scotland, " it is only by looking to 
Jesus I can either increase or retain what he has 
bestowed. The Lord does, I think, more than ever 
enable me to live by believing in him and looking 
to him. My life, in a small degree, is one contin- 
ued looking up to him, dwelling under the covert 
of his blood, and realizing the presence of my God ; 
this spreads a heavenly serenity through my mind, 
and sweetly solemnizes my spirit." 



MORNING DEVOTION 43 



CHAPTER VI. 

MORNING DEVOTION— BEGINNING THE DAY 
WITH GOD. 

'* My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O 
Lord." A Hfe of piety can be maintained only by 
daily prayer, and the sooner the duty is attended to 
in the morning the better shall we be prepared to 
meet the events and responsibilities of the day. 

First of all, there should be an early and grate- 
ful acknowledgment of the kind providence that 
has watched over us during the night, refreshed us 
with sleep, and brought us to welcome the light of 
a new day. ** It is good to give thanks unto the 
Lord, and to sing praises unto thy name, O Most 
High ; to show forth thy loving-kindness in the 
morning, and thy faithfulness every night." 

Next, there should be a renewed dedication of 
our lives to God, of body and soul, with a sincere 
desire and purpose to walk in the way of his com- 
mandments and live for his glory. 

Then should follow earnest supplication for the 
Divine guidance, protection, and blessing through 
the entire day, committing all our interests into the 



44 ONWAjRD, 

hands of God, to dispose of us according to his 
holy pleasure. *' Lead us not into temptation, but 
deliver us from evil." 

Thus let every day begin with God. What we 
are in the morning we shall probably be in the 
evening. If we commence the day in a devout 
frame, we may hope to continue in that frame to 
the close. 

There are special reasons why we should enter 
upon the day with prayer. It is now that wt are 
commonly best fitted for the exercise. Our frames 
are most vigorous, our minds most tranquil, and 
our thoughts least occupied with the cares of the 
world. The adorable Saviour, though he sometimes 
spent the whole night in prayer, we are told arose 
a great vv^hile before day to pour out his heart in 
supplication. 

When we enter upon a new day, we enter upon 
a new step in life. What events may be before us 
is known alone to Him in whose hands is our 
breath, and whose are all our ways. Who can tell 
what temptations may assail us, what trials may 
meet us, what responsibilities may be laid upon us. 
God may lead us by a way we know not, a way 
entirely different from that we have marked out for 
ourselves. Disease may invade our frames, hopes 



MORNING DEVOTION 45 

may be blasted, loved ones may be torn from our 
embrace. Our mountain, that now appears to stand 
strong, may suddenly be moved ; the tempter may 
assail us at the most vulnerable point. We may be 
thrown into new situations, our integrity may be 
subjected to new tests, and it may require miore 
than ordinary grace to maintain our firmness. '^ A 
change of circumstances in our condition in life is a 
critical period. A m.an who has not passed through 
such a change can form no adequate notion of its 
effect upon the mind." 

Where, then, is our security } In ourselves .^ 
Who that knows his own heart can trust it for a 
moment. The very first assault of temptation may 
move us from our steadfastness, and find us in the 
grasp of the enemy. You have seen the tall oak 
that has stood year after year, firm as a rock, sud- 
denly swept away by the tempest, and laid pros- 
trate upon the earth. So it has been with many a 
promising professor who has trusted in himself, 
and failed to look to God for protection. '' Hold 
thou me up, and I shall be safe." " Be thou my 
arm every morning; my salvation also in time of 
trouble." 

Happily we have the promise, '* As thy day, so 
shall thy strength be." *' Wait on the Lord ; be of 



46 ONWARD. 

good courage, and he shall strengthen thy heart ; 
wait, I say, on the Lord." 

*' If my heart/' says Bishop Hall, " be early sea- 
soned with the Lord's presence, it will savor of him 
all day after." '' I feel," says McCheyne, " it is far 
better to begin with God, to see his face first, to 
get my soul near him before it is near another." 
*^ With him," writes his biographer, " the commence- 
ment of all labor invariably consisted in the prepa- 
ration of his own soul. The forerunner of each 
day's visitations was a calm season of private devo- 
tion during morning hours." 

" My sweetest time for secret prayer," says 
Lady Maxwell, "is early in the morning. In the 
morning, when I first open my eyelids, oh, how 
delightful do I feel it to fly by faith to Jesus." 

Bunyan represents his Pilgrim, after reposing 
during the night in **the Chamber of Peace," as 
awaking at the break of day and singing to the 
praise of his great Redeemer : 

"Where am I now? Is this the love and care 
Of Jesus, for the men that pilgrims are 
Thus to provide ? That I should be forgiven, 
And dwell already the next door to heaven !" 

Devoting an early part of the day to prayer, and 
receiving fresh communications of divine grace. 



MORNING DEVOTION . 47 

what a tendency has it to prepare us for every duty, 
nerve us for every conflict, fit us for every emer- 
gency ; and while in the world, lift us above the 
world, calmly reposing our spirits upon the bosom 
of a faithful, unchangeable God. We are told that 
" travellers in Alpine regions are encompassed with 
clear atmosphere and cloudless sunshine while trav- 
ersing the summits of those lofty mountains, at the 
very time that the world below them is all wrapped 
in mists and darkness, and thunder-clouds are burst- 
ing at their feet. Even thus does prayer lift the 
believer to a loftier and serener region, far above 
the clouds and storms that darken and distract the 
world. In that region of purity and peace the at- 
mosphere is clear and calm ; the light of God's 
countenance shines brightly on the believer's soul, 
while he sees the thunder-cloud of earthly care and 
sorrow rolling beneath his feet, thus realizing the 
beautiful illustration of the poet: 

" ^ As some tall cliff that lifts its awful form, 

Swells from the vale, and midway leaves the storm, 
Though round its base the rolling clouds are spread, 
Eternal sunshine settles on its head.' " 

Pressing engagements may sometimes furnish a 
strong temptation either to omit the morning prayer, 
or to hurry it over with but little devotion. When 



48 ONWARD. 

placed in such circumstances, we should regard it 
as but a trivial self-denial to rise at an earlier hour, 
so as to afford ample time to pay our customary 
visit to the throne of grace. By no means should 
we venture upon a journey or engage in any busi- 
ness without first invoking the guidance and bless- 
ing of Heaven. It is related of Colonel Gardiner 
that " if at any time he was obliged to go out before 
six in the morning, he rose proportionally sooner ; 
so that when a journey or a march has required him 
to be on horseback by four, he would be at his de- 
votions at farthest by* two." God, however, does 
not regard so much the length of our prayers as the 
spirit in which they are offered. Better is it to 
spend a few moments in converse with him than to 
omit the duty altogether. 



CONTINUAL PR A YER. 49 



CHAPTER VII. 

CONTINUAL PR A VER. 

" Pray without ceasing — continuing instant in 
prayer — men ought always to pray, and not to 
faint — praying always with all prayer.'* 

What is the proper meaning of these passages ? 
They all inculcate the duty of contmual prayer ; but 
in what sense is this to be understood } 

It cannot be supposed that we are constantly to 
be engaged in vocal prayer, or in the act of offer- 
ing our petitions to God. This would not only be 
inconsistent with the laws of our physical being, 
but would also interfere with other duties equally 
binding. 

Every Christian, it may be assumed, will have 
stated seasons for prayer, seasons which should be 
regarded as sacred, and which nothing but some 
unavoidable hindrance should lead him to neglect. 
No rule, however, can be laid dov/n as to the/r^- 
quency of such seasons. The Scriptures have not 
prescribed any, and our circumstances differ so ma- 
terially that it would be impossible to fix on any 



50 ONWARD. 

that would suit in all cases. '' Evening, morning, 
and noon," said the Psalmist, " will I pray, and cry 
aloud." And what Christian, deeply sensible of his 
wants, and properly appreciating the privilege of 
prayer, can be satisfied with repairing to the throne 
of grace less frequently? We need not fear that 
we shall pray too ofteru Does the affectionate 
child ask how often it shall express its love to its 
parents ? Prayer is the converse of the soul with 
God, and we may be sure that we cannot speak to 
him too often or ask of him too much. 

Important as may be these three stated seasons 
of daily prayer, a Christian living in close fellow- 
ship with God can hardly limit himself to them. 
There will be days when his wants will appear so 
numerous and pressing, and when he will so ar- 
dently long to pour forth his desires to God, that 
nothing but repeated prayer can bring him any 
relief. Persons of eminent piety have been in the 
practice of setting apart whole days for humiliation 
and prayer, and such seasons have been found one 
of the most effectual means of their spiritual ad- 
vancement. 

There are occasions when special seasons of 
prayer are particularly appropriate. You may be 
about to take some important step in life, may have 



CONTINUAL PRAYER. 51 

some new responsibilities thrown upon you, or may 
have met with some new trial. To whom, in the 
hour of your need, will you repair for guidance and 
support, but to Him who orders all things in wis- 
dom and benevolence ? Let us learn a lesson from 
the example of our blessed Master, who at his bap- 
tism, in his conflict with the tempter, at the com- 
missioning of the twelve apostles, and on other 
occasions of special interest, devoutly looked to 
Heaven for needed grace. 

But there is still another meaning that may be 
attached to these exhortations to continual prayer. 
They may include also what has been appropri- 
ately denominated mental or ejaculatory prayer — 
the silent offering up of our petitions to God. 

This kind of prayer is suited to all times and 
places. At home, abroad, in solitude, in company, 
on a bed of sickness, or amid the daily concerns of 
life, '' in everything by prayer and supplication, with 
thanksgiving," we may let our *' requests be made 
known to God." 

The following case may perhaps afford one of 
the best illustrations of such prayer. At a meeting 
of ministers the question was discussed, How can 
the command to "pray without ceasing" be com- 
plied with .'^ ''Various suppositions were started. 



52 ONWARD, 

and at length one of the number was appointed to 
write an essay upon it, to be read at the next 
monthly meeting ; which being overheard by a fe- 
male servant, she exclaimed, * What ! a whole month 
wanted to tell the meaning of that text ! It is one 
of the easiest and best texts in the Bible/ *Wel], 
well,' said an old minister, * Mary, what can you say 
about it ? Let us know how you understand it. 
Can you pray all the time ?' ' Oh yes, sir/ * What ! 
when you have so many things to do ?' 'Why, sir, 
the more I have to do, the more I can pray/ * In- 
deed ; well, Mary, do let us know how it is, for most 
people think otherwise/ ' Well, sir/ said the girl, 
*when I first open my eyes in the morning, I pray, 
'' Lord, open the eyes of my understanding ;" and 
while I am dressing I pray that I may be clothed 
with the robe of righteousness ; and when I have 
washed myself I ask for the washing of regenera- 
tion ; and as I begin to work I pray that I may 
have strength equal to my day. When I begin to 
kindle the fire I pray that God's work may revive 
in my soul ; and as I sweep out the house I pray 
that my heart miay be cleansed from all its impuri- 
ties ; and while preparing and partaking of break- 
fast I desire to be fed with the hidden manna and 
the sincere milk of the word ; and as I am busy 



CONTINUAL PR A YER. 53 

with the little children, I look up to God as my 
Father, and pray. for the spirit of adoption, that I 
may be his child ; and so on all day ; everything I 
do furnishes me with a thought for prayer/ 

'' * Enough, enough !' cried the old divine ; 
* these things are revealed to babes, and often hid 
from the wise and prudent. Go on, Mary,' said he, 
*pray without ceasing; and as for us, my brethren, 
let us bless the Lord for this exposition, and re- 
member that he has said, the meek will he guide in 
judgment/ 

''The essay, as a matter of course, was not 
considered necessary after this little event occur- 
red/' 

This devotional frame of mind can exist only in 
connection with a high degree of spirituality and a 
will in harmony with the will of God. Our thoughts 
must be habitually fixed on God. No sin must be 
suffered to shut out the light of his face and hinder 
our free access to him at all times. We must de- 
sire only what he desires. Every desire then be- 
comes virtually prayer, whether expressed in words 
or simply the offering of the heart. Prayer thus 
becomes more a habit than an act. " Delight thy- 
self in the Lord, and he will give thee the desire of 
thy heart.'' It was the resolve of Hannah More 



54 ONWARD, 

''never to pass an hour without lifting up her 
heart to God through Christ to aid her to Hve for 
him." 

It is said of Dr. Payson that he needed not to 
go to the throne of grace, for he was always there. 
Everything was commenced, continued, and closed 
with prayer. He studied, he wrote, he preached, 
he planned, he visited, with prayer. 

In this stirring age there is a special necessity 
to cherish the spirit of devotion. Prayer is the 
very life of piety. " Apostasy begins at the closet- 
door.'* We may attend to all the public means of 
grace, and yet the divine life within us may lan- 
guish, unless sustained by communion with God in 
the closet. We must retire from the crowd, place 
ourselves in the immediate presence of the Searcher 
of hearts, and unbosom to him all our wants and 
desires. 

On that very day when Archbishop Cranmer 
signed a recantation by which, contrary to his own 
better convictions, he renounced Protestantism for 
Popery, he left his closet without praye}'. Had he 
there sought his usual aid from on high, how dif- 
ferent, in all probability, would have been his course 
in the hour of trial, and what remorse and anguish 
mi«:ht he thus have avoided. 



I 



CONTINUAL PRAYER. 55 

A Christian lady has remarked, *' If all the 
twelve apostles were preaching in a certain town, 
and we could have the privilege of hearing them 
preach, yet if they kept us out of our closets, and 
led us to neglect prayer, better for us never to 
have heard their names, than to have gone to lis- 
ten to them." 



56 ONIVARD. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

WA TCHFULNESS. 

It is remarkable how closely the Scriptures 
connect the duty of watchfulness with that of 
prayer : *' Watch and pray, that ye enter not into 
temptation — continue in prayer, and watch in the 
same with thanksgiving — praying always with all 
prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching 
thereunto,'' etc. 

We have ,here the union of divine and human 
agency. While we pray that we may be kept by the 
power of God, we must at the same time keep our 
own hearts with all diligence. Important as prayer 
is, it will avail nothing without watchfulness. Not 
only should we watch while engaged in prayer 
against all wandering thoughts and unbelieving 
suggestions, but after we have prayed, looking for 
an answer to our petitions, and sedulously guard- 
ing against whatever may hinder the efficacy of our 
prayers. "Prayer without watchfulness is hypoc- 
risy; watchfulness without prayer is presumption." 

Watchfulness implies danger, and furnishes the 
means by which, in humble dependence on divine 



II 



WATCHFULNESS, 57 

aid, we are to guard against it. The world is a 
great battlefield. Enemies lie in ambush in every 
direction, who may spring upon us at any moment, 
and there is no security but in perpetual vigilance. 

The source of all temptation, however, is in man 
himself. " Every man is tempted when he is drawn 
away of his own lust, and enticed," There is al- 
ways some lust, some desire, some propensity, which 
gives to temptation all its power. 

Man is possessed of certain appetites and pas- 
sionSy constituting a part of his very nature, as 
formed by the Creator himself. Innocent as these 
may be in themselves, they may become the occa- 
sion of sin. They may be gratified in an improper 
manner, or may be indulged in an undue degree. 
While the desire for food is entirely lawful, its ex- 
cessive indulgence may become sin. So too with 
the sensation of thirst, when we attempt to allay it 
by what is hurtful either to body or mind. 

There are also in the constitution of man cer- 
tain mejttal propensities or desires, which, when 
properly directed, are entirely harmless ; such, for 
example, as the desire of knowledge, the desire of 
possession, the desire of reputation. It was not 
wrong for the primitive pair to desire an increase 
of wisdom, but that desire became sin when in- 



S3 ONWARD. 

dulged contrary to the will of God. It is not wrong 
to desire a good name ; but if we seek it at the sac- 
rifice of duty, we forfeit the favor of God. 

Man is possessed of domestic and social affec- 
tions, and these may lead to attachments inconsist- 
ent with the will and honor of God. 

These constitutional affections and propensities 
have all become vitiated or depraved by the fall, 
and hence the power of external objects to affect 
the mind and prove a source of temptation. 

Temptations may arise from the company with 
which we mingle. We are constantly affected by 
the sentiments and conduct of those around us. A 
single word may leave an impression for good or 
evil that may become indelible. 

Our reading may be a source of temptation. A 
bad book may do us more harm than a bad man. 
A publication, while it may contain much truth, 
may also contain much error, and the danger is 
that we shall be far more influenced by the error 
than the truth. 

Our occupation or calling in life may lead us 
into temptation. Lawful as it may be, we may 
become so absorbed in it as to neglect the higher 
interests of eternity, or transact our business in 
violation of the strict principles of integrity. 



WATCHFULNESS. 59 

Our recreations aiid aniusenie7its may become a 
temptation. We may be ensnared by indulgences 
that tend to alienate the heart from God, and ren- 
der us '^ lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God." 

Temptations may arise from our cirannstaitces 
in life. Wealth has its temptations, poverty has its 
temptations, and every situation has its tempta- 
tions. A transition from opulence to poverty, or 
from poverty to opulence, is often attended with 
peculiar danger. 

Our physical infirmities may tempt us to neglect 
religious duties and produce a spirit of fretfulness 
and distrust. 

Our greatest danger often results from the most 
trivial causes. We are on our guard against great 
and violent temptations, but may see little neces- 
sity to watch against those daily trials that beset 
our path. Job could bear his losses and bereave- 
ments with devout submission, but became irritated 
and impatient under the unkind censures of his 
friends. 

In addition to all these sources and occasions 
of temptation, demanding incessant watchfulness, 
we must also remember the constant agency of tJie 
arcli-enefny to di'azv ns into sin. Invisible as that 
agency is, it is on that account the more dangerous. 



6o _ ONWARD. 

With unceasing vigilance he watches every oppor- 
tunity to entice us to evil. He makes his appeal 
to our senses and all the susceptibilities of our na- 
ture, and adapts his assaults to all the varying cir- 
cumstances of our life. He has temptations for the 
eye, the ear, the taste, and for every power and fac- 
ulty of our minds. The Scriptures speak of his 
wiles, his snares, his depths, his devices, his Jierj/ 
darts. When he does not meet us *' as a roaring 
lion," he '' transforms himself into an angel of light." 

How important, then, the admonition, " Watch 
and pray, that ye enter not into temptation." 
Watchfulness is opposed to a spirit of slumber and 
indolence. We must watch against all the occasions 
of temptation. These, indeed, are often unavoida- 
ble. We are constantly surrounded with objects 
and influences calculated to entice us to sin. There 
may be no possibility of avoiding them. Fly to the 
wilderness, and they will meet you there. Shut 
yourself up in a cloister, and they will meet you 
there. 

But there are certain sources of temptation 
which it may be possible to shun. Experience and 
observation have taught us their dangerous ten- 
dency, and our safety depends on keeping at a dis- 
tance from them. Never read any book, never 



WATCHFULNESS. 6i 

mingle with any company, never engage m any 
business, never form any connections, never par- 
ticipate in any amusement, that is likely to prove a 
snare to your soul. If you suffer yourself to be 
carried away by worldly fascinations, to read de- 
moralizing publications, to engage in business of 
doubtful propriety, or to form connections for life 
with those who are strangers to grace, you thus 
place yourself in the current of temptation, and 
must expect to be borne along to the vortex of 
ruin. " Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his 
clothes not be burned } Can one go upon hot 
coals, and his feet not be burned T 

Watch against the first assault of temptation. 
Give no place to the tempter. Guard against the 
beginning of evil. Stop that thought. Crush that 
feeling. Guard the door of your lips. Beware of 
a self-confident spirit. Angels fell, the primitive 
pair fell, and the most eminent saint would fall 
were it not that underneath him are the everlasting 
arms. It is the policy of the enemy to assail us at 
what we may regard the most invulnerable point. 
Moses, wath all his meekness, " spake unadvisedly 
with his lips." Abraham, with all his faith, gave 
way to distrust. Peter, with all his boldness, de- 
nied his Lord and Saviour. No man, however 



62 ONWARD. 

holy, knows what temptations he may yet encoun- 
ter ; no man, whatever may be his present firmness, 
would be secure a moment were he not upheld by 
an almighty hand, " Wherefore, let him that think- 
eth he standeth, take heed lest he fall." 

This warfare with our spiritual foes must be 
renewed daily, and continued during life. It will 
end only with the end of our probation. No mat- 
ter what attainments you may have made in holi- 
ness, you have constant need of watchfulness and 
prayer, just as much as you had when you entered 
upon your religious course. 

"Life is the scene of conflict, not of rest; 
Man's is laborious happiness at best ; 
On this side death his dangers never cease, 
His joys are joys of conquest, not of peace." 

It is our comfort to know that the grace of God • 
will ever be sufficient, and that ultimately we shall 
come off even more than conquerors. " Blessed is 
the man that endureth temptation ; for when he is 
tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the 
Lord hath promised to them that love him." 



% 



SPIRITUAL FOOD, i^.:^^ 



CHAPTER IX. 



SPIRITUAL FOOD. 



The soul can no more live without food than 
the body, and God has kindly provided for both. 
Divine truth, contained in the Sacred Scriptures, is 
man's spiritual aliment. ''As new-born babes, de- 
sire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow 
thereby.'* The Word of God not only furnishes 
milk for babes, but also meat for those who are 
more advanced in the divine life. Holiness in man, 
though the fruit of the Spirit, is effected through 
the instrumentality of truth. " Of his own will be- 
gat he us by the word of truth." And as truth is 
the means of our regeneration, so is it also of our 
progressive sanctification. '' Sanctify them," prayed 
Jesus, ''through thy truth ; thy word is truth." All 
the exercises of the renewed heart are produced in 
view of the objects and motives presented in the 
Scriptures : love to God in view of his infinite per- 
fection ; repentance in view of the evil of sin ; faith 
in view of the person and offices of Christ; sub- 
mission in view of the divine supremacy. "All 



64 ONWARD. 

Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is 
profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, 
for instruction in righteousness, that the man of 
God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all 
good works." 

Progress in grace must be the result of progress 
in divine knowledge. There may indeed be growth 
in knowledge where there is no corresponding 
growth in grace; yet so intimate is the relation of 
the two, that in urging the duty of religious ad- 
vancement, the apostle has connected them : ''Grow 
in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ." An increase of love to God, 
hatred of sin, faith in Christ, or any other gracious 
exercise, must be the effect of a clearer apprehen- 
sion of evangelical truth. 

There is everything in the Word of God adapted 
to man's spiritual wants and the promotion of his 
religious advancement. 

Do you need light f ''Thy word is a lamp unto 
my feet and a light unto my path." Do you need 
strength ? " Strengthen thou me, according to thy 
word." Do you need comfort ? *'This is my com- 
fort in my affliction ; for thy word hath quickened 
me." Do you need restraint from sin ? "Thy word 
have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against 



SPIRITUAL FOOD, 65 

thee." Do you need quickening? "My soul cleav- 
eth unto the dust ; quicken thou me, according to 
thy word." Do you need a spiidtual weapon f 
*' The sword of the Spirit is the word of God." 

Important, however, as is an intimate acquaint- 
ance with the Word of God to our religious prog- 
ress, everything depends on the manner in which 
the Scriptures are read. They may be read merely 
from custom, from a sense of duty, or as a mere 
literary production, without any direct view to our 
spiritual benefit. It is certainly proper that they 
should be studied critically — studied with the ear- 
nest endeavor to ascertain the meaning of every 
chapter and verse. All may not be equally capable 
of this, and yet there are but few Christians who 
may not, by availing themselves of the helps within 
their reach, acquire in the course of time a very 
accurate and extensive knowledge of the Sacred 
Writings. 

But we now have in view more especially the 
devotional reading of the Bible — reading it with 
direct reference to our spiritual edification. No 
rule can be prescribed as to the best method to 
secure this object, what portion of the Scriptures 
to read, or how much to read at one time. The 
reader must here consult his own state of mind and 

Onward. q 



65 ONWARD. 

circumstances. It is not the quantity of food we 
eat that nourishes us, but its thorough digestion. 
Not only must we '^ read, mark, learn,'* but '^ in- 
wardly digest'' the word of God. Better read but 
a few verses with serious attention, than hurriedly 
and without reflection to pass over a whole chapter. 

Read with self -application. Remember that the 
Bible is a message from God to man, a message to 
you as an individual, addressing you on matters of 
infinite moment, and demanding your most earnest 
attention. 

Read it with devout meditation. Dwell on the 
passage before you until you fully enter into its 
spirit, and it becomes deeply impressed upon your 
heart. ''Oh,'' said the Psalmist, "how love I thy 
law ; it is my. meditation all the day." 

Read it with faith. Come to the Bible, not as 
a teacher, but as a learner. Attempt not to set up 
your own judgment in opposition to the revelations 
of infinite wisdom. Be not content Avith half of a 
Bible. You must receive all or none. "All Scrip- 
ture is given by inspiration of God." Receive it, 
"not as the word of man, but as it is in truth, the 
word of God." 

Above all, read it with prayer for divi7ie illumi- 
nation. The same Spirit that inspired the Bible 



SPIRITUAL FOOD. 67 

can alone enable you rightly to understand it. ''We 
have received, not the spirit of the world, but the 
Spirit which is of God, that we might know the 
things that are freely given us of God." 

Luther studied the Bible on his knees. So did 
also Dr. Thomas Scott, to whose highly devotional 
■ spirit we are indebted for his excellent Commen- 
tary. '' Open thou m^ine eyes," prayed David, ''that 
I may behold' wondrous things out of thy law." 

The Bible should be read daily. We need daily 
nourishment for the soul as much as we do for the 
body. The Israelites were to gather manna daily, 
and so should we gather day by day the spiritual 
food of God's word. The venerable John Quincy 
Adams, a short time before his death, stated to a 
friend that since the age of thirty he had been ac- 
customed, among the first things, to read the Bible 
every morning. With but few interruptions he 
pursued this course for half a century. 

There can be no sitbstititte for the word of God. 
However highly we may value the productions of 
men, they must never be suffered to occupy the 
place of the inspired page. The Bible is the source 
of all divine knowledge ; the works of good men 
are only the streams, too often partaking of the 
quality of the soil through which they flow. Luther 



68 - OiYlVARD. 

*' professed that if he thought the reading of his 
books would hinder the reading of the Holy Scrip- 
tures, he would burn them all before he died." 
Henry Martyn was once placed in circumstances 
that prevented him from having access to almost 
any other book but the Bible. '' For want of other 
books I was obliged to read my Bible almost exclu- 
sively, and from this I derived great spirituality of 
mind, compared with what I had before." And 
does not this accord with the experience of Chris- 
tians generally ? The more they honor God's 
word, the more will he honor them. Let us, in 
the language of James B. Taylor, strive to be Bible 
Christians. Let every point of doctrine and duty 
be tried by ^'the law and the testimony." Let "the 
word of God dwell in us richly in all wisdom and 
spiritual understanding." Let it be our constant 
companion, our comfort in life, and our support in 
death. 

" Oh, may these heavenly pages be 

My ever dear delight, 
And still new beauties may I see, 

And still increasing light.'' 



REALIZING GOD'S PRESENCE, 69 

CHAPTER X. 

REALIZING THE PRESENCE OF GOD. 

The presence of God fills immensity. *' He is 
not far from every one of us ; for in him we live, 
and move, and have our being/' But who realizes 
the fact ? It is one thing to admit it in theory, 
another to act under its influence ; one thing to be 
intellectually convinced of it, another to be deeply 
conscious of it. It is recorded of Enoch that " he 
walked with God." He felt that God was ever 
near to him, and lived as in his presence, walking 
in the same path, pursuing the same end. Moses, 
it is said, "endured as seeing him who is invisible." 
This may seem like a paradox. How can we see 
what is invisible } With the eye of sense '* ilo man 
hath seen God at any time ;" and yet to the eye of 
faith he may be ever present. 

" Faith lends its realizing light ; 

The clouds disperse, the shadows fly ; 
The invisible appears in sight, 
And God is seen by mortal eye." 

The wicked are said to be '' without God in the 
world," living virtually as if there were no God to 



70 ONWARD, 

whom they are accountable, and who takes cogni- 
zance of all their doings. It is the effect of true 
piety to bring God ever near, to produce an abiding 
consciousness of his presence. Thus the Psalmist, 
deeply impressed with the all-pervading presence 
of God, exclaims, "Whither shall I go from thy 
Spirit ? or whither shall I flee from thy presence ?" 
etc. President Edwards, it is said, had at all times 
such a consciousness of the presence of God as 
affected his whole demeanor, influencing all his 
preparations for the pulpit and all his public ser- 
vices, and producing an effect upon his audience 
that was irresistible. 

The life of piety depends upon habitually cher- 
ishing a sense of the Divine presence. Whether at 
home or abroad, whether in the sanctuary or in the 
midst of our worldly avocations, we must feel that 
we are surrounded by an everywhere-present and 
always-present Jehovah. 

*' Within thy circling power I stand, 
On every side I find thy hand ; 
Awake, asleep, at home, abroad, 
I am surrounded still with God." 

What a check would the conviction of this truth 
give to sin. Who would dare to sin, did he realize 
that the searching eye of God is upon him } *' I 



REALIZING GOD'S PRESENCE, 71 

have kept thy precepts and thy testimonies," says 
David, *'for all my ways are before thee." 

What a motive to sincerity. '' Man looketh on the 
outward appearance, but God looketh on the heart." 

What a spur to our devotions. *' The Lord is 
nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that 
call upon him in truth." 

What a comfort in affliction. *' I have set the 
Lord always before me ; because he is at my right 
hand, I shall not be moved." 

You retire to the closet for prayer. No human 
eye is upon you, but your heavenly Father seeth in 
secret, and will reward you openly. 

You enter the sanctuary, and under the awe- 
inspiring presence of God, exclaim, '* How dreadful 
is this place! this is none other than the house of 
God, and the gate of heaven." 

You embark upon the ocean ; but you behold 
God there, holding the winds in his hands, and say- 
ing to the raging billows, *' Peace, be still !" 

You wander in the dreary desert ; but you see 
the footprints of the great Creator there, and feel 
that his unseen hand is directing all your steps. 
Alone, yet not alone amid the deepest solitudes 
that can be found on earth. 

You are shut up in prison ; but with the con- 



72 ONWARD. 

sciousness that you are suffering for righteousness* 
sake, your prison is turned into a palace, resounding 
with songs of rejoicing and praise. 

You are confined to a bed of sickness ; but illu- 
minated with the light of God's countenance, your 
chamber becomes a Bethel. 

You pass through the valley of death ; but even 
there you say, " Thou art with me ; thy rod and thy 
staff, they comfort me.'' 

We cannot appreciate too highly the influence 
which the habitual realization of the presence of 
God would exert upon our religious character. Let 
the impression of that presence upon us be so deep 
and permanent, that wherever we go and whatever 
we do, we shall feel that we are under the Divine 
inspection. Never do anything you are unwilling 
God should witness ; never utter anything you are 
unwilling God should hear ; never cherish a thought 
you are unwilling God should know ; never go any- 
where you are unwilling God should go with you. 
Live every moment as in his sight ; and let it be 
your comfort by day and by night that he is pres- 
ent with you, not merely as the Spectator of your 
conduct and the Searcher of your heart, but as your 
sympathizing Friend, a *' very present help" in every 
time of need and trouble. 



TRIALS SANCTIFIED. 73 

CHATTER XI. 

TRIALS SANCTIFIED, 

The subject of our consideration in this chapter 
is closely connected with the general design of this 
volume. Eminent piety is usually attained only 
through severe trials. It has ever been the course 
of the Lord first to lead his people into the valley 
of humiliation before he exalts them to distin- 
guished honors and comforts — first to cause them 
" to sing of judgment" before they "sing of mercy." 
Labor precedes rest, conflict precedes victory. 

The trials of good men are various. In addi- 
tion to those that are common to humanity, they 
have others that are peculiar to them. Trials may 
arise from pecuniary losses, disappointed hopes, the 
orovocation of enemies, the instability of friends, 
physical infirmities, painful bereavements, etc. 
Some of these trials come directly from the hand 
of God, some from the hand of man, some from the 
agency of evil spirits ; but all are either permitted 
or ordered by the Great Ruler for the spiritual good 
of believers. 

The trials of some are chiefly internal, of others 

On ward. 10 



74 ONWARD. 

external, and in many instances the two are com- 
bined. There are trials of faith, of patience, of sub- 
mission, of self-denial, of humility, of temper, of 
integrity. Thus Job, Abraham, Elijah, Daniel, 
Paul, and the '^ great cloud of witnesses," whose 
faith and patience we are exhorted to follow, all 
had their peculiar trials, through which they passed 
to their eternal reward. " Beloved, think it not 
strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try 
you, as though some strange thing happened unto 
you." *' There hath no temptation taken you but 
such as is common to man." 

These trials are designed as a test of character. 
As gold is exposed to the action of fire to distin- 
guish it from base metal, so does God subject our 
religion to various trials, in order to test its genu- 
ineness. There is much that has the appearance 
of religion that is not really such. It is desirable, 
therefore, that v^e should be placed in circumstan- 
ces that will aid us in determining our true charac- 
ter — to undeceive us if deceived, and to confirm our 
confidence if well grounded. '' That the trial of 
your faith, being much more precious than of gold 
that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might 
be found unto praise, and honor, and glory, at the 
appearing of Jesus Christ." 



1 



TRIALS SANCTIFIED, 75 

There are certain plants that flourish best in the 
shade. Exposed to the sun, they wither and die. 
It is not in the sunshine of prosperity, but in the 
clouds of adversity, that Christians commonly attain 
the highest spiritual prosperity. 

There are also plants that do not fully emit their 
fragrance until bruised. So there are Christian 
graces that do not fully develop their sweetness 
and virtue but under the pressure of severe trials. 
''Tribulation worketh patience, and patience expe- 
rience, and experience hope/' "There is some- 
thing," says the Rev. Samuel Pearce, " in affliction 
itself which, by increasing the delicacy of our feel- 
ings, and detaching our thoughts from the usual 
round of objects which present themselves to the 
mind w^hen in a state of health, may be easily con- 
ceived to make us susceptible of stronger and 
more permanent impressions of an affectionate 
character." 

'' Every branch," says Jesus, " that beareth fruit, 
he purgeth (or pruneth) it, that it may bring forth 
more fruit." The removal of the small shoots, and 
occasionally a large branch, from the vine, may be 
essential both to its vigor and its fruitfulness. So 
the Christian's advancement in holiness and useful- 
ness may be best promoted by cutting off from him 



76 ONWARD. 

all those excrescences by which his spiritual growth 
may have been retarded. The process, though pain- 
ful, is often most salutary. 

God does not deal with all his people alike. 
There are some who appear to attain a high degree 
of piety Vv^ithout any severe conflicts. Such, how- 
ever, is not usually the case. The redeemed are all 
represented to have entered heaven *' through great 
tribulation." If the Christian is not tried in one 
way, he will be in another. What may be a trial to 
some, may not be to others. The saints are all 
said to be in God's hands. He not only appoints 
their trials, but wisely adapts them to the end in 
view. 

You take up the memoirs of some eminently 
pious person, and say, *'I will strive to be like him. 
I will follow him as he followed the Saviour. I will 
endeavor to enjoy the same communion with God, 
the same power in prayer, the same exulting hopes.'' 

But, dear reader, are you prepared to receive 
the same baptism of suffering, to pass through the 
same conflicts, in order to reach the desired emi- 
nence.'* It may be that the reader is now passing 
under " the rod of the covenant." One stroke has 
succeeded another, and you are ready to ask, *' Why, 
if God loves me, has he made me his mark .^ Why, 



TRIALS SANCTIFIED. 77 

if I am his child, has he permitted these troubles to 
come upon me ? Why has he removed my prop- 
erty, blighted my prospects, torn from me my child 
and the partner of my bosom ? Why these temp- 
tations of the adversary, these 'fiery darts' with 
which I am so constantly assailed ?" Why ? Be- 
cause God designs to consummate the work of 
grace he has commenced, to lead you to clearer 
views of your weakness and dependence, to pro- 
duce in you deeper humility, to render the Saviour 
increasingly precious, and to afford you fuller man- 
ifestations of his glory. ''Whom the Lord loveth 
he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he 
receiveth." " Oh, my God !" prayed Lady Max- 
well, " put thou a thorn in every enjoyment, a worm 
in every gourd, that would either prevent my being 
wholly thine, or in any measure retard my progress 
in the divine life." And has not the reader offered 
the same prayer .? Has he not repeatedly said, 

" The dearest idol I have known, 
Whate'er that idol be, 
Help me to tear it from thy throne, 
And worship only thee" 1 

Why then complain when God is so manifestly 
answering your prayer } Why dictate to his infi- 
nite wisdom how he shall accomplish his gracious 



78 ONWARD. 

purpose in your salvation? Say not, "My way is 
hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over 
from my God ;" but, rather, '' I know, O Lord, that 
thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithful- 
ness hast afflicted me." 

The trial through which the reader may now 
be passing may be longer or shorter as God in his 
adorable wisdom and goodness may direct. In the 
mean tim.e his watchful eye is ever upon you, and 
you will see in the end that he has "done all things 
well." Job's last days were his best days ; and so 
when the God of all grace and comfort has accom- 
plished his purpose in your trials, you will attain a 
spiritual prosperity unknown in your previous ex- 
perience. " He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of 
silver ; and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and 
purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer 
unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." Mai. 

3 : 2, 3. 

We are told that a number of ladies in Dublin 
were in the practice of meeting together to read 
the Scriptures and make them the subject of profi- 
table conversation. After discussing the second 
and third verses of the third chapter of the proph- 
ecy of Malachi respecting the method of purifying 
the precious metals, one of the ladies went to a sil- 



TRIALS SANCTIFIED. 79 

versmith with whom she was acquainted to inquire 
how it was effected, and particularly what was the 
business of the refiner himself during the opera- 
tion. '' Do you sit, sir, at the work ?" " Oh yes," 
he replied ; '^for I must keep my eye steadily fixed 
on the furnace, for if the silver remain too long 
under the intense heat it is sure to be damaged." 
She at once saw the beauty and propriety of the 
image employed — *^ He shall sit as a refiner of sil- 
ver." As she was returning to the ladies with the 
information, he called her back, and remarked there 
was one thing of importance he had forgotten to 
mention, and that was that he only knew the exact 
instant when the purifying process was complete 
by then seeing his own countenance in it. Again 
the spi7'it2ial mt^.nmg shone forth through the beau- 
tiful veil of the letter — when God sees his own im- 
age in his people, the work of sanctification is com- 
plete. It may be added that the metal continues in 
a state of agitation till all the impurities are thrown 
off, and then it becomes quite still, a circumstance 
which heightens the exquisite analogy of the case. 

" He that from dross would win the precious ore, 
Bends o'er the crucible an earnest eye, 
The subtle searching process to explore, 

Lest the one brilliant moment should pass by 



So OAnvARn. 

When in the molten silver's virgin mass 

He meets his pictured face, as in a glass. 
Thus in God's furnace are his people tried ; 

Thrice happy they who to the end endure. 
But who the fiery trial may abide? 

Who from the crucible come forth so pure, 
That He whose eyes of fiame look through the whole, 

May see his image perfect in the soul 1 
Nor with an evanescent glimpse alone. 

As in that mirror the refiner's face. 
But stamped with heaven's broad seal that there be shown 

Immanuel's features full of truth and grace ; 
And round the seal of love this motto be, 

' Not for a 7no7nent^ but eternity,^ " 



A 



1 



LIVING TO THE LORD, Bi 

CHAPTER XII. 

LIVING TO THE LORD. 

When that distinguished statesman and philan- 
thropist, WiHiam Wilberforce, was requested by a 
lady to furnish for her album an article that might 
serve as a motto for her future life, he wrote, 
''None of us liveth to himself, and no m.an dieth 
to himself ; for whether we live, we live unto the 
Lord, and whether we die, we die unto the Lord : 
whether we live, therefore, or die, we are the 
Lord's." A more suitable one he could not have 
penned. The passage is descriptive of piety, not 
merely in its higher stages, but of Christian char- 
acter generally. Entire consecration to Christ is 
the indispensable condition of discipleship. Luke 

14:33. 

Living to the Lord is directly the opposite of 
living to ourselves. The one is characteristic. of 
the spiritual man ; the other of the natural man. 
In their apostate state men are described as "lovers 
of their own selves." Selfishness, or the inordinate 
love of self in some form, sways every unrenewed 
mind. 

Onward. I I 



82 ONWARD, 

It is one grand design of redemption to subdue 
this principle of selfishness, and enthrone God 
upon the human heart. Christ *'died for all," that 
they should not henceforth live unto themselves, 
but unto him which died for them and rose again. 
Man's chief end, both in creation and redemption, 
is **to glorify God, and enjoy him for ever.'* 

" But how," it may be asked, '* can a creature 
so feeble and unworthy, glorify- God T' Not by 
enhancing his essential glory and blessedness, for 
*'our goodness extendeth not unto him," but by 
adoring his infinite perfections, acknowledging his 
supremacy, submitting to his will, acquiescing in 
his plan of redeeming mercy, approving his dis- 
pensations, obeying his precepts, reflecting his 
image, and promoting the great interests of his 
moral kingdom. Every man must have some su- 
preme object of affection and pursuit, and the 
nature of that object determines his character. 
Either God or self must be uppermost in every 
human breast. 

A regard to the glory of God must be the 
controlling principle of our whole life, of every 
action of our life. " Whether ye eat or drink, or 
whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." 
This rule must govern us not merely in our devo- 



LIVING TO THE LORD. ' Zi 

tional exercises, but in all our secular concerns. 
We must engage in no business but what is strict- 
ly lawful, and none however lawful, unless con- 
ducted on the principle of justice and equity. 
Wealth must be sought, not as the means of per- 
sonal aggrandizement, but as a means of useful- 
ness, and on all our possessions, whether little or 
much, must be inscribed in legible characters, 
" Holiness unto the Lord.'' Influenced by such 
motives, the daily avocations of life, so far from 
interfering with our spiritual welfare, would tend 
to promote it. We should regard ourselves as the 
servants of God in all things. Every duty would 
be observed as a religious duty, and business then, 
instead of proving, as it too often does, a clog to 
our heavenward progress, would prove to us, as a 
good man (Normand Smith) once said it was to 
him, *'a means of grace.'* *' From the time when 
he devoted all to God, and resolved to pursue his 
business as a part of his religion, he found no 
tendency in his worldly engagements to chill his 
piety or enchain his affections to earth." 

We may be as selfish in our religion as in our 
worldly pursuits. We cannot, indeed, be too much 
in earnest in working out our own salvation ; but 
we may be so absorbed in our personal comfort 



34 ONWARD. 

and enjoyment as to lose sight of God's glory, thus 
entirely reversing the divine order, and hindering 
our own spiritual interest. In all our prayers for 
ourselves and for others, in all our efforts for the 
salvation of souls, in the employment of all our 
bodily and mental energies, our first desire should 
be that God may be glorified. It is possible, 
indeed, to mistake our mental exercises. There is 
a fire of our own kindling as well as that which is 
of celestial origin, but as there is an essential dis- 
tinction between true and false religion, why may 
we not be as conscious that we are now living for 
the glory of God as we are that we once lived only 
for ourselves 'i That self-denying missionary, Da- 
vid Brainerd, could say, " I as sincerely desire to 
love and glorify God as any angel in heaven.'* And 
who, in view of the discomforts and hardships 
which he so cheerfully endured for Christ's sake, 
can question his sincerity. 

That devoted philanthropist, Mrs. Elizabeth 
Fry, in her last illness solemnly declared to her 
daughter, "I can say one thing: since my heart 
was touched at the age of seventeen, I believe I 
have never awakened from sleep, in sickness or in 
health, by day or by night, without my first waking 
thought being how best I might serve my Lord." 



LIVING TO THE LORD. 85 

If we would live to the Lord, we must fully 
sympathize with him in his great designs, and be- 
come co-workers with him in their accomplish- 
ment. We live in a world which, though fallen, is 
under a dispensation of mercy. In the salvation of 
souls God is eminently glorified. When he appears 
to build up Zion, he appears in his glory. In this 
stupendous enterprise he permits us to take part. 
He has saved us that we may become the instru- 
ments of salvation to others ; enlightened us that 
we may reflect light upon others. In a world so 
full of sin and suffering, we can surely be at no 
loss for something to do, by which we may further 
the designs of infinite benevolence. The temporal 
wants of man should by no means be overlooked. 
We are directed to *^ put on bowels of mercy, to do 
good to all men, to be ready to distribute, to weep 
with those that weep, and rejoice with those that 
rejoice." 

The salvation of the soul claims our special 
regard. And where shall we begin our efforts, if 
not with those under our own roof — our children, 
our domestics, and those with whom we are daily 
surrounded and conversant } The souls of these 
may be no more valuable than others, but there is 
thrown upon us a most sacred responsibility to 



86 ONJVARD, 

labor for their spiritual welfare, and there is a man- 
ifest inconsistency in directing our attention to 
others, while those under our immediate care, and 
to whom we have constant access, are neglected. 
Dr. Thomas Scott, the commentator, was a remark- 
able example of fidelity to his household. As the 
result of his fidelity, *' his whole family became the 
sons and daughters of the Most High. Even to 
the domestics of the household Jlid his example 
and prayers bring salvation." 

But Christian charity, if it begins at home, does 
not stay at home. 

" The little pebble stirs the peaceful lake ; 
The centre moved, a circle straight succeeds ; 
Another still, and still another spreads ; 
Friend, parent, neighbor, first it will embrace, 
Our country next, then all the human race ; 
Wide and more wide, th' o'erflowings of the mind 
Take every creature in, of ever}- kind." 

Our field is the world. ^ For the world God has 
provided salvation, and to the world is the glorious 
news to be proclaimed. Our responsibility for the 
world's conversion is just in proportion to the in- 
fluence we can exert in accomplishing it. We 
cannot convert the world ourselves, but we can 
use the means appointed for the purpose. We 
cannot speak to all about the great salvation, but 



LIVING TO THE LORD, 87 

we can speak to God in their behalf. We cannot 
all go forth as missionaries to distant lands, but we 
can aid in sending fort others. " Go/' says the 
Master, ''into my vineyard and work.-' The rest 
into which the believer has entered is not one of 
mere repose or quietism ; but of the highest and 
noblest activity. Like the rest of heaven, it con- 
sists in serving God with holy ardor, and without 
interruption. The passive and active graces, as 
they have been termed, are inseparable. The calm 
repose of the spirit in its communion with God 
must ever be accompanied with a sincere desire to 
to do his will and advance the interests of his king- 
dom. We are made and redeemed to be not merely 
recipients, but agents, not merely to receive good, 
but to do good, not merely for enjoyment, but for 
service. In former times the piety of Christians 
eminent for spirituality assumed a contemplative 
cast. They had not those facilities to spread the 
gospel which we possess, and perhaps were not 
duly impressed with their obligation to labor for 
this object ; but to us a great and an effectual door 
has been opened, the harvest everywhere is ripe, 
and we have only to thrust in the sickle and reap. 
We need now as much the cultivation of personal 
piety as ever ; but our piety may now flow in a 



88 ONWARD, 

new channel, and receive new manifestations. Let 
it then be our constant endeavor to do something 
to extend the kingdom of God upon the earth. It 
is for this we are to live, and for this, when re- 
quired, we are to be ready to die — 

" Day after day filled up with blessed toil, 
Hour after hour still bringing in new spoil." 

A distinguished statesman, near the close of life, 
said, *^If I had but one day more to live, that day 
should be devoted to the good of my country." 
Let the Christian ever be actuated by the same 
noble resolution in reference to the cause of his 
Saviour: whether your days be many or few, let 
them all be consecrated to him. Do something, 
do what you can, only let it be done with a 
single eye to the glory of God. The motive by 
which you are influenced is of far more importance 
than the act itself. ''If two angels," says the Rev. 
John Newton, " came down from heaven to execute 
a divine command, and one was appointed to con- 
duct an empire, and the other to sweep a street in 
it, they would feel no inclination to change employ- 
ments." You may be shut up in a sick-chamber, 
but even there, by your cheerful submission to the 
divine will and your earnest pleadings at the 



LIVING TO THE LORD. 89 

throne of grace, you may glorify God quite as 
much as you could by active exertion. 

" They also serve who only stand and wait." 

Never let the record be made, '' I have lost a 
day." Let no opportunity to do good be neglected. 
Let your life be a succession of sincere and earnest 
efforts to usher in the glorious era, when the glory 
of God will shine forth in the redemption of a 
world from sin and death. 

" Live, live for God, 

And toil a world to save ; 
Live, live for God, 

Nor heed the coming grave ; 
The time, the place, the way, 

He knows them all ; 
Do well thy work to-day, 

And wait his call." 



12 



ONWARD, 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE DAILY WALK. 

Christian piety and Christian morality, the 
religion of the heart and religion of the life, are 
inseparable. There can be no true piety, where 
there is no corresponding morality ; and it is equal- 
ly certain that there can be no true morality where 
there is no genuine piety. What a man is in 
heart he will be in life. "A good man, out of 
the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth good 
things/' 

Piety may be regarded as having more immedi- 
ate reference to the duties we owe to God ; morali- 
ty to those that relate to man. He who is faithful 
in the discharge of the former can surely not be 
remiss in the latter. Love to God and love to man 
constituting the sum and substance of the divine 
law, are so connected the one can never exist with- 
out the other. There is, indeed, a kind of morality — 
the morality of the world — that is very different 
from Christian morality. The one is based upon 
piety ; the other may have no relation to it v/hat- 



THE DAIL Y IVALK, 9 1 

ever, may even be hostile to it. The one has its 
seat in the heart ; the other is merely external, and 
at best superficial and defective. 

True piety will exert an influence over every so- 
cial relation and every department of human life. 
What it is on the Sabbath, it is through the week. 
So far from being confined to the sanctuary, the 
communion-table, and the closet, it goes with men 
to the hall of legislation, the court of justice, the 
office, the store, the shop, the farm, the anvil, the 
loom," the kitchen — to all the varied occupations 
and pursuits of life. It will lead men to make no 
promises they do not intend to fulfil, to contract 
no debts there is not a reasonable prospect of pay- 
ing, to withhold nothing from others that is their 
due, even though it may not be legally claimed, to 
use no weights or measures but such as are perfect- 
ly just, to take no advantage of the necessities, the 
ignorance, or the confidence of any either in buying 
or selling, to magnify no article beyond its worth 
in order to obtain an exorbitant price, nor to depre- 
ciate an article in order to obtain it at less than its 
real value. 

Christian piety will render men kind, gentle, 
forbearing, and forgiving. It will make better hus- 
bands and wives, better masters and servants, bet- 



92 0NWA2^D. 

ter rulers and citizens. " I would give nothing/* 
says Rowland Hill, in his odd v/ay, " for the Chris- 
tianity of a man whose very dog and cat were not 
the better for his religion." 

''Piety at home" will lead parents not only to 
instruct and counsel and pray for their children, but 
to set them a consistent example. When a Chris- 
tian minister was asked what he thought of the 
piety of a certain individual, his reply was, " I do 
not know, I have never lived with him." The man 
who does not walk circumspectly before his house, 
but is known to be unkind, morose, and passionate, 
can hardly secure the confidence of the public, 
however splendid at times may be his deeds of 
charity. A Christian's character should be so un- 
sullied as to be beyond suspicion. It is not enough 
that he is not chargeable with any flagrant trans- 
gression ; like his divine Master he should be " holy, 
harmless, and undefiled." It should be his endeavor 
to avoid even '' the appearance of evil." Instead 
of trying how near he can come with safety to the 
boundary line between right and wrong, he should 
guard against any proximity to it. A single blem- 
ish in a Christian professor may mar his whole 
character, and entirely neutralize his influence. 
Whatever may be his virtues, they may all be 



THE DAILY WALK, 93 

covered by his defects. The sHghtest obliquity 
may be magnified into a crime. Strange as it may 
seem, it is nevertheless true, that it often requires 
more vigilance to guard against trivial defects than 
against great ones, more grace to endure our little 
everyday trials, than the severer ones with which in 
the providence of God v\/'e may be visited. " Many 
Christians,'* says the Rev. John Newton, ^'who 
bear the loss of a child, or the destruction of all 
their property, with the most heroic Christian for- 
titude, are entirely vanquished and overcome by the 
breaking of a dish, or the blunders of a servant, 
and show so unchristian a spirit that we cannot 
but wonder at them." 

Our regard to the will of God may be as clearly 
indicated by a scrupulous attention to little things 
as by our attention to great things. " He that is 
faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in 
much ; and he that is unjust in the least, is unjust 
also in much." If you weigh a pound of tea, you 
may do it to the glory of God ; if you cut a piece 
of cloth, you may do it to the glory of God ; if you 
cultivate the soil, you may do it to the glory of 
God ; if you indulge in any recreation, you may do 
it to the glory of God. Acting thus from Christian 
principle, you may be as much in the line of duty 



94 ONWARD. 

in the ordinary transactions of life, as when en- 
gaged in prayer and praise. 

In a sermon preached by the Rev. John Caird 
before the Queen of Great Britain on " ReUgion in 
common life," we have the following very pertinent 
and just remarks: ''There is a very common ten- 
dency in our minds to classify actions according to 
their outward form rather than according to the 
spirit or motive which pervades them. Literature 
is sometimes arbitrarily divided into sacred and 
profane literature; history into sacred and profane 
history, in which classification the term 'profane' 
is applied, not to what is bad or unholy, but to 
everything that is not technically sacred or reli- 
gious, to all literature that does not treat of reli- 
gious doctrines and duties, and to all history save 
church history. And we are very apt to apply the 
same principle to actions. Thus in many pious 
minds, there is a tendency to regard all the actions 
of common life as by an unfortunate necessity 
lost to religion. Prayer, the reading of the Bible 
and devotional books, public worship, and buying, 
selling, digging, sowing, bartering, money-making, 
are separated into two distinct and almost hostile 
categories. The religious heart and sympathies 
are thrown entirely into the former, and the latter 



THE DAILY WALK, 95 

are barely tolerated as a bondage incident to oi^r 
fallen state; but almost of necessity tending to turn 
aside the heart from God.'' 

Were religion always to be thus carried into 
all the concerns of life, what an illustration would 
be furnished of its loveliness, and what a confirma- 
tion of its reality. No Butler, nor Paley, nor any 
other writer on the Evidences of Christianity would 
be needed. The lives of professing Christians 
would afford an argument in its favor that would 
prove unanswerable. When a young man was ex- 
amined with reference to his ordination to the 
Christian ministry, he stated that at one period of 
his life he was nearly an infidel ; '' but," said he, 
*' there was one argument in favor of Christianity 
which I could never refute, the consistent conduct 
of my father." 

The lives of Christians are the world's Bibles. 
Many who never read the Word of God daily read 
the conduct of those who profess to be governed 
by its principles, and form their judgment accord- 
ingly. Were all professors of religion to connect 
with ardent piety a strict morality, instead of the 
rebuke, "What do ye more than others?" would 
be heard the exclamation, '' How goodly are thy 
tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel." 



96 ONWARD, 

Thus indeed would the tabernacles of God be with 
men, and he would dwell with them. 

''I beseech you, brethren," says the apostle, 
"that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith 
ye are called." *' Whatsoever things are true, 
whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things 
are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever 
things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good 
report ; if there be any virtue, and if there be any 
praise, think on these things." 

It is a sad delusion when a men under pretext 
of magnifying the grace of the Gospel, abrogate 
the law of God, thus making Christ not a Saviour 
from sin, but the minister of sin, and by their god- 
less lives bringing dishonor upon the sacred name 
by which they are called. It is a singular fact that 
this antinomianism has sometimes been connected 
with claims to superior illumination and with the 
most confident assurance of salvation. "Do we 
then make void the law of God through faith ? 
God forbid ; yea, we establish the law." 

" Mistaken souls ! that dream of heaven, 
And make their empty boast 
Of inward joys and sins forgiven, 
While they are slaves to lust." 



SELF-COMMUNION. 97 



CHAPTER XIV. 

SELF-COMMUNION. 

Self-communion is the converse of the soul 
with itself — thought responding to thought, the 
inspection of our own hearts with the view to as- 
certain their spiritual state. No one can truly 
know himself without this self-converse ; and yet 
how sadly is the duty neglected, and how superfi- 
cially often is it performed. We converse with men, 
we converse with books, but how seldom with our- 
selves. It is to this neglect we may attribute the 
self-deception so alarmingly prevalent among pro- 
fessors of religion. Many shrink from all close 
heart-searching, as if they already suspected that 
they could not bear the scrutiny. Whatever ac- 
quaintance they may have with other matters, they 
remain most deplorably ignorant of their own 
hearts. The want of reflection has ruined thou- 
sands. The Christian, even in his most advanced 
state, needs frequently to call himself to account 
and sit in judgment upon his spirit and conduct. 
The duty should not be confined to particular times, 
but should be an habitual exercise. Every action 

Onwarl. X^ 



93 ONWARD, 

should be thoroughly investigated, and its moral 
character determined as in the presence of God. 

There are certain seasons when this self-con- 
verse is especially appropriate. Such, for exam- 
ple, is 

The anniversary of oicr birthday. We now enter 
upon a new era in our life. How becoming, then, 
that we not only contemplate the future, but also 
call to remembrance the past. Let us say to our- 
selves, "Another year has been added to my pro- 
bation ; how has the past been improved } I have 
been placed here to act my part as a rational and 
responsible being, and to form a character that will 
fit me for an immortal existence hereafter. Have 
I devoted myself to the great business claiming my 
attention } How stands my account for eternity } 
For what purpose have I lived, and to what destiny 
am I tending in the future t 

'' Through the kind providence of God I am 
permitted to commence a: new year. The season 
invites reflection. Come, then, my wayward heart, 
and let us see what report the days of the departed 
year have borne to heaven. The past year, like 
others, has been one of distinguished mercy. What 
returns have I rendered to the Lord for all his ben- 
efits ? What improvement have I made of my 



SELF-COMMUNION, 99 

time ? What progress have I made in the divine 
life ? What have I done to glorify God and serve 
my generation ? Whose wants have I supplied ? 
Whose sorrows have I alleviated ? For whose sal- 
vation have I labored ? Think, oh, my soul, how 
rapidly thy days and years are passing away, and 
how quickly the night of death will terminate all 
opportunities for usefulness here on earth. 

** I have been favored with another Sabbath. 
How have I spent the day that God claims espe- 
cially as his own ? Have I been ' in the Spirit on 
the Lord's day,' 'calling the Sabbath a delight, the 
Holy of the Lord, Honorable, not doing mine own 
ways, nor finding mine own pleasure, nor speaking 
mine own words '? I have listened to the message 
of the gospel ; what benefit have I derived from 
it ? I have read God's holy word ; what new light, 
strength, and comfort has it afforded me ? I have 
appeared before God with my body, and honored 
him with my lips ; have I worshipped him in spirit 
and in truth ? 

"Again it has been my privilege to partake of 
the sacred emblems of my bleeding, dying Saviottr, 
Has it indeed been to me a banquet of love ? Have 
I enjoyed communion with him and with his saints ? 
Has my faith received new confirmation, and have 



loo ONWARD. 

I left my vow of fidelity on his altar, fully resolved 
for him to live and for him to die ? 

*^ God has laid upon me his afflicting ha7id. In 
the day of adversity let me consider. What pur- 
pose is this affliction intended to accomplish, what 
evil to correct, what spiritual benefit to secure ? 
Have I been truly submissive to the Divine will ? 
Have I been led to see more clearly my frailty and 
dependence ? Have my affections become more 
v/eaned from earth, and has my heart been drawn 
forth in more ardent aspirations after the everlast- 
ing rest of the saints ? 

" The curtains of night have agaifi been thrown 
around me, the tumult of the world is hushed, the 
intrusions of company are withdrawn, sensible ob- 
jects have retired from my view ; let me, then, be- 
fore I commit myself to sleep, commune v/ith my 
own heart upon my bed ; let me inquire what im- 
provement I have made of the golden moments fled 
beyond recall : my actions — have they been such as 
God approves and my own conscience justifies? 
My thoughts — have they been fixed on God, or ab- 
sorbed in the trifles of earth ? My affections — have 
they been placed supremely on the Creator or the 
creature ? My woi^ds — have they been such as are 
*good to the use of edifying,' honorable to God, and 



SELF-COMMUNION. loi 

worthy of my Christian profession ? My motives — 
will they bear the scrutiny of the Omniscient Eye 
and the revelations of the great day ? My worldly 
avocation — has it been conducted on truly Christian 
principles, or in accordance with the corrupt max- 
ims of the ungodly ? My intercourse with society — 
what have I said or done calculated to promote 
either the temporal or the eternal interest of those 
with whom I have been associated ? My opportu- 
nities for usefulness — have I diligently availed my- 
self of them, and in any way advanced the cause of 
humanity and benevolence ? The precious Bible."- 
have I read it with attention, with self-application, 
and with profit ? Have I made it 'the man of my 
counsel and the guide of my life'? My prayers — 
have they been the outpouring of my soul to God ? 
Have I spread before him all my wants, with full 
confidence in him as the hearer of prayer ?" 

Who, after this self-converse, will not find abun- 
dant cause both for thankfulness and humiliation — 
thankfulness that notwithstanding the obstacles that 
have opposed our progress, we have still, through di- 
vine grace, been enabled to hold on our way ; humil- 
iation, that while we may have been preserved from 
open transgression, we have come so far short of the 
perfect demands of God's law ? Let us remember 



102 ONWARD. 

that there are sins of omission, as well as sins of 
commission ; sins that consist in leaving undone 
what we ought to do, as well as in doing what we 
ought not to do. You may love God sincerely, 
but may and ought you not to love him more ? You 
may have true benevolence, but may and ought not 
your benevolence to be more pure and unselfish ? 
You may possess the spirit of prayer, but may and 
ought you not to pray with more faith and importu- 
nity ? The last words of Archbishop Usher are said 
to have been, " O Lord, forgive me my sins of omis- 
sion." And who that has any just views either of the 
extent of the divine law, or of the requirements of 
the gospel, can forbear exclaiming, " If thou. Lord, 
shouldst mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand V 

" The best obedience of my hands 

Dares not appear before thy throne ; 
But faith can answer thy demands 
By pleading what my Lord has done." 



CONCLUSION, 103 

CHAPTER XV. 

CONCLUSION. 

I . What an exalted a7td blessed life is one of tnie 
piety. It has been truly designated as *' the life of 
God in the soul of man." Not only has it its origin 
in God, but it also conforms us to the moral image 
of God. We become ''partakers of the Divine na- 
ture," ''partakers of God's holiness," having, in a 
measure, the same views, affections, and aims as the 
glorious and ever-blessed God himself. Greater 
dignity humanity cannot attain. 

"A Christian is the highest style of man." 

How far superior is this spiritual life to the 
mere life of nature — a life of inward purity, holy 
love, noble aspirations, and immortal hopes. The 
soul has now found its proper centre and rest, and 
its most enlarged desires are satisfied in communion 
with the fountain of all good. " Oh," says the se- 
raphic Summerfield, "what a heaven is this, when 
love dwells in the heart, looks out at the eye, beams 
in the face, breathes from the lips, distils from the 
hands, moves in the feet, and creates an atmosphere 
all around which angels might delight to inhale ! 



104 ONWARD, 

' He that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God 
in him/ '^ 

Life with the Christian is not a round of fash- 
ionable folly, or the vain pursuit of earthly fame 
and treasure, but devotion to the highest object 
that can employ the human energies. 

" With us no melancholy void, 
No moment lingers unemployed, 

Or unimproved below ; 
Our weariness of life is gone 
Who live to serve our God alone. 

And only him to know." 

The life of heaven is but the continuation and 
maturity of Christian life on earth. '' He that be- 
lieveth on the Son hath everlasting life" — hath it 
as 2, p7'esent possession. Grace is glory in the bud, 
the *' earnest of our inheritance." The elements of 
our character are the same now that they will be in 
heaven, and our happiness, too, the same in kind, 
though not the same in degree. 

True, we have our trials ; but we have also our 
supports. We have our conflicts ; but we have also 
our triumphs ; and every conquest gained over our 
spiritual foes becomes to us a new source of grati- 
fication and a fresh stimulus to persevering fidelity. 
Whatever may be our outward allotments, we have 



CONCLUSION. 105 

still inward peace, " a peace which the world cannot 
give nor take away." If happiness can be found 
anywhere, it must be in such a life — our sins all 
pardoned, our souls accepted in the Beloved, adopt- 
ed into the family of heaven, our trials all sanctified, 
and our course of holy obedience and enjoyment 
perpetuated for ever ! 

2. And what an influence must elevated and con- 
sistent piety exert upon the world, *' Ye are," says 
Jesus, '' the light of the world — the salt of the 
earth." The influence of an eminently pious man 
has sometimes pervaded a whole neighborhood. 
We can hardly come in contact with such a man 
without being impressed with his superior worth. 
One intimately acquainted with that faithful servant 
of Christ, Harlan Page, says, " I have well consid- 
ered the assertion when I say, that during nine 
years, in which we were associated in labors, I do 
not know that I ever passed an interview with him, 
long enough to have any interchange of thought 
and feeling, in which I did not receive from him an 
impulse heavenward, an impulse onward in duty to 
God and the souls of men." What, then, would be 
the effect were all who name the name of Christ to 
breathe the same spirit ! 

Oh, for a holy church, a church '' the habitation 



io6 ONWARD. 

of God through the Spirit." This, more than any- 
thing else, is what is needed for the world's conver- 
sion. We need more ardent love to Christ, more 
compassion for perishing souls, more vigorous faith, 
and more entire consecration to the glory of God. 
With such an elevated standard of piety there would 
be men enough and money enough, and *^ power 
with God " enough, speedily to usher in the glori- 
ous era when all flesh shall see the salvation of God. 
*' The Lord hath set apart him that is godly for him- 
self." He will honor those who honor him. Holy 
men are needed to promote holiness. "Awake, 
awake ; put on thy strength, O Zion ; put on thy 
beautiful garments, O Jerusalem." " Arise ; shine, 
for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is 
risen upon thee." Let our motto be, Onwar4 ctnd 
still onward, higher and still higher, satisfied with 
nothing short of "all the fulness of God," with joy- 
ful expectation looking forward to the time when 
we shall be presented before the throne "without a 
spot or blemish or any such thing." 

It may be that this small volume will fall into 
the hands of some who are yet "aliens from God 
and strangers to grace." Hitherto you have lived, 
not for God, but for the world and self. " The God 
in whose hands thy breath is, and whose are all thy 



CONCLUSION. 107 

ways, thou hast not glorified." Oh, what a blank 
the past ! What a review for a death-bed — a wasted 
life, perverted powers, goodness abused, provision 
made for the body, but none for the soul ; treasure 
laid up for earth, but none for heaven ; the great 
end of existence unattained ! And then \^^futui'e — 
how dark ! What you are in time you remain 
through eternity. " He that is filthy shall be filthy 
still ;" no redemption beyond the grave, no more 
sacrifice for sin, no interceding Saviour, no plead- 
ing Spirit, no heaven, no hope ! 

Oh, " be wise to-day, 't is madness to defer." 
The fountain for sin and uncleanness is still open 
and accessible ; salvation, purchased at the price of 
precious blood, is freely tendered, and you have 
only to accept it on the simple condition of faith, 
and you enter upon a new existence, a career of 
holiness, usefulness, and happiness, that will know 
no end. 



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